http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
21 November 2012
Soldiers deployed in Hurungwe,
Mashonaland West province, are reportedly
campaigning for ZANU PF by forcing
villagers to divulge their political
affiliations and threatening to evict
them from the area if they refuse.
But a local activist told SW Radio
Africa the majority of the soldiers are
recent graduates from the youth
militia training camps in Hwange, who have
returned to live among the
villagers in order to monitor opposition
activity.
A report by the
Crisis Coalition said Chief Ephraim Matawo is working under
instructions
from the soldiers to compile a list of villagers in his area,
which also
includes the political party they support. The information is
turned over to
the military.
Crisis said despite the intimidation, three villagers from
Zvipani in
Hurungwe West reportedly refused to give up their personal
details,
insisting that the party they support is their secret and
questioning why
the information was to be handed over to the
military.
The three brave villagers, named as Simbarashe Mbareta, Josphat
Muringapasi
and Tawanda Mavhondo, were summoned by Chief Matawo and forced
to pay a $25
fine. They were also threatened with eviction from Zvipani
village.
A local activist from Makonde told SW Radio Africa that the
villagers know
these soldiers are not part of the mainstream army. They are
local youths
who dropped out of school earlier this year and were recruited
into ZANU-PF’s
youth militia training programmes.
“Before they were
recruited chiefs were involved in the exercise. They had
to identify the
recruits and most came from Matawo and Makonde areas. They
went for training
in Hwange and what we feared at the beginning is happening
now. They
graduated from 6 months training and returned to live among the
villagers,”
our source explained.
The activist, who chose not to be identified, said
it is not clear whether
these youth militia are part of the main army, but
they are referred to as
soldiers.
He added: “They were not given a formal
place to camp. They live with their
parents and guardians, so that they can
hear what everyone is saying and
minimise opposition
activities.”
This confirms reports by the Crisis team, who said that
villagers fear the
exercise is a ZANU-PF strategy to identify MDC-T
supporters to be victimised
by the army and youth militia.
Crisis
said soldiers are also campaigning for ZANU PF in Masvingo and
Manicaland
provinces. Traditional chiefs in Nyanga North and South were
recently
visited by soldiers from the 3 Brigade in Mutare, for so-called
“orientation
programmes. In Bikita traditional leaders were allegedly
ordered to attend
meetings at the army headquarters.
There are real concerns that ZANU-PF
is mobilising army units in order to
duplicate the violent mayhem that was
attributed to the military in the
run-up to the 2008 presidential runoff.
ZANU PF supporters and officials,
army officers, war vets and youth militia,
went on a violence spree that
left over 500 MDC-T supporters dead, tens of
thousands injured and half a
million displaced.
http://www.mdc.co.zw
Wednesday, 21
November 2012
Moses Moyo, the MDC Matabeleland North Secretary for Home
affairs, yesterday
escaped death by a whisker following an attack by gun
totting Zanu PF thugs
at his home last night. The gunmen threatened Moyo
with death for being an
MDC member.
Moyo managed to call the police
from Saucetown after he blocked the Zanu PF
members’ car from escaping.
Police arrested the two Zanu PF members -
Takesure Mbano, the Zanu PF
Secretary for Security and Tinashe Chikara. A
docket was opened at Saucetown
police station –RRB -1396184.
These hoodlums were driving a Toyota land
Cruiser registration number-ABR
2473. The serial number of the gun pointed
at Moyo is C426474-7,65 Calibre.
They threatened Moyo with death saying
that he does not deserve to own a
plot since he is aligned to the party of
excellence.
The MDC continues to condemn harassment of its members by
Zanu Pf
functionaries especially in Bubi-Umguza District where Obert Mpofu
uses his
ill gotten wealth to target members of the MDC. The party stands
aware of
Mpofu’s machinery of violence, which is well oiled by money
siphoned from
the Chiadzwa diamonds.
The MDC calls upon all citizens
to vote out these thugs whose glory is
derived from fighting against peace
for all Zimbabweans. It is clear that
Zanu PF thugs are on the prawl in
Matebeleland to orchestrate yet another
genocide against the people in the
region.
It emerged yesterday that Tinashe Chikaka, is employed by the
dead party’s
Harare province but is causing havoc in Bubi-Umguza district.
Such acts are
reminiscent of the Zanu PF genocide tactics during the
Gukurahundi era.
Obert Mpofu has shamefully sanctioned these actions
against our people in
the region targeting those affiliated to the MDC. The
party stands firm
against this retribution and calls on all peace loving
Zimbabweans to
condemn the violent activities by Zanu PF.
The Last
Mile: Towards Real Transformation!!!
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
21
November 2012
Two ZANU PF members, including one employed by that party’s
security
division, have been arrested in Bulawayo after threatening an MDC-T
official
with violence.
The pair, Tinashe Chikara and Takesure Mbano,
the ZANU PF Secretary for
Security, was arrested on Tuesday after storming
the property of MDC-T
member Moses Sivalo Moyo. Moyo was threatened with
violence by the pair, who
were armed with a gun, and ordered to leave his
home. According to the
MDC-T, Moyo was targeted solely for being an
opposition activist.
Moyo, who is also the MDC-T Matabeleland North
Secretary for Home Affairs,
took matters into his own hands and stopped the
ZANU PF pair from leaving
his property by blocking his driveway.
SW
Radio Africa’s correspondent Lionel Saungweme reported that Moyo also
managed to disarm Chikara who was wielding the gun. He then drove the pair
to the police station in Saucetown and opened a case. The ZANU PF members
were still being held in custody on Wednesday under unclear
charges.
“The assumption at the moment is that this was intimidation. The
modus
operandi here is associated with the CIO and, given that Moyo is an
MDC-T
activist, it is assumed this was deliberate intimidation,” Saungweme
said.
Moyo was one of the many victims of ZANU PF led violence during the
turbulent 2008 election period, that saw hundreds of deaths, and thousands
of beatings and attacks. During that time Moyo suffered broken ribs after
being attacked on his property by a gang of ZANU PF militia.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
21 November 2012
The MDC-T has accused police spokesman Chief
Superintendent Oliver Mandipaka
of gross insubordination, for waging a
propaganda war against Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai in Buhera,
Manicaland province.
Mandipaka, who is believed to be using police
resources to campaign for the
Buhera South constituency in the 2013
parliamentary elections, has been
going around the area demonising
Tsvangirai and the MDC-T.
The party accused Mandipaka over the weekend of
attempting to disrupt
Tsvangira’s field day program at his rural homestead
at Humanikwa Village in
Buhera. The top cop coerced villagers in the area to
demonstrate against the
Premier.
Pishai Muchauraya, the provincial
spokesman for the party in Manicaland,
said it is only proper for Mandipaka
to resign from the force before
engaging in full-time politics. As it is,
according to Muchauraya, Mandipaka
is still on the ZRP payroll and that in
itself disqualifies him from
engaging in politics.
‘The Police Act
prohibits serving members of the police from participating
in active
politics. He is abusing state resources to campaign for the Buhera
South
seat and we condemn that,’ the Makoni South MP said.
Muchauraya said they
are not worried about his political ambitions as they
view him as a person
without political clout.
‘In politics he’s still a novice and poses no
threat to the MDC-T. Even his
President in ZANU PF, Robert Mugabe, will be
beaten hands down in Buhera
South if he wants to stand as an
MP.
‘He’s dreaming and wasting his time campaigning here because he, like
some
in ZANU PF before him, will lose dismally in the next election because
they
have nothing else to offer to the people of Zimbabwe,’ Muchauraya
said.
If Mandipaka wins the right to stand for ZANU PF in the next
elections, he
will most likely contest against academic Professor John
Makumbe who has
made it known he will be contesting on an MDC ticket.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
21 Novembe 2012
The Anglican Cathedral in Harare and
other church buildings that were seized
illegally from the main church by
breakaway Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, are
currently being re-possessed and are
to be cleansed before they are used
again.
This is according to
Harare Bishop Chad Gandiya who addressed journalists in
Harare on Thursday,
following this week’s victory at the Supreme Court. The
court ordered
Kunonga to return all the properties that he took, because he
left the
Anglican Church voluntarily in 2007.
“There will be a cleansing and
re-dedication of the Cathedral and all parish
buildings to what they should
be, that is holy places and buildings set
apart for the worship and
glorification of our God. Some of these places
were desecrated when we were
in exile,” Bishop Gandiya said.
Gandiya was referring to reports that
some of the buildings seized by
Kunonga had been occupied by criminal
elements that used them as brothels.
He added: “The church has planned to
have a big thanksgiving service in
Africa Unity Square on December 16. Our
friends and ecumenical partners will
come to witness the return of the
Bishop’s cathedra……..that is the chair
that was made during our time in
exile.”
One of the buildings that had been taken over was the Shearley
Cripps Home
in Murehwa, which housed more than 100 orphans. The staff were
all evicted
and the orphans left to starve. Bishop Gandiya told journalists
that some of
the children were being sexually abused as
well.
According to Gandiya, a report was made to the police as soon as
they
received word of the abuse two weeks ago, and an arrest was
made.
The Bishop also invited back those clergy who had followed Kunonga
to the
new Church Province of Zimbabwe, which Kunonga formed after the
split. He
said no one will be victimised but they will not be allowed to
keep the
positions Kunonga gave them without any proper
training.
Bishop Gandiya said utility bills had not been paid in some
churches. The
church will ensure that the debts are properly assigned to
those who were
responsible, especially since they occupied the buildings
illegally.
Gandiya said church leadership, on a parish level, have been
taking stock of
everything at the church buildings and consolidating
inventories, to make
sure that every item that has ever belonged to the
church is accounted for.
“Items that are found to be missing will also be
recorded and where
necessary reports will be made to the proper authorities.
The prospect of
recovering missing items appears to be remote, but efforts
will be made.
The Bishop said they would also ensure that those who
occupied their
buildings illegally and caused Anglicans significant
suffering, are also
properly rehabilitated, if they admit their sins and
repent.
Anglicans hope the transition will go peacefully. But it is
feared Kunonga
might resist eviction from the main cathedral on December
16th and use his
links to ZANU PF to hold onto the main church buildings in
Harare.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 11:57
HARARE - Disgraced
ex-communicated bishop Nolbert Kunonga and his hangers-on
were in disarray
yesterday, with no sign that they were preparing to leave
Harare’s main
Anglican Cathedral following a Supreme Court ruling that
returned properties
to the mother church.
Kunonga’s Manicaland sidekick Bishop Elson Jakazi
defiantly said he was not
going anywhere “for now”.
When the Daily
News crew visited the Anglican main Kunonga in a mess
Cathedral in Harare,
Kunonga cut a forlorn figure as he sat in the sun
pondering his next move in
the wake of his fall from grace to grass.
He refused to say anything as
reality sank in.
A reverend who attended to the Daily News crew only
identified as Thandi
said Kunonga would come back to us.
“He will
talk to you, but not just now. We will be in touch though,” said
Thandi.
In a telephone interview later, Thandi said they were not
moving.
“Moving to where? We will move when the time comes, for now we
are here,” he
said.
In Manicaland, Kunonga’s proxy, Jakazi, was
digging in saying the cases were
different.
“There has been a lot of
confusion and I need to clarify something here. We
are separate entities,”
Jakazi said. “These dioceses are different and
autonomous of each other. We
are not under the Harare Diocese and are still
waiting for the determination
of our case.
“It was previously thrown out by the Supreme Court on
(October 22) on a
technicality but then we immediately rectified the problem
and re-lodged it.
There was never an order relating to the Manicaland
diocese and for now we
are not going anywhere.
“For me it is business
as usual, there is nothing that has changed. I was
actually surprised to see
Julius Makoni (the Manicaland Bishop in the Chad
Gandiya-led Church of the
Province of Central Africa (CPCA) commenting in
some sections of the media
saying they will be taking back their properties.
That is not going to
happen until the court has made a determination. We are
waiting for the
trial,” he said.
Jakazi is currently in charge of St Augustine’s Mission
in Penhalonga as
well as St David’s Bonda in Mutasa, among a host of
properties under the
Manicaland Diocese.
From Chivhu where Kunonga’s
group had taken over Daramombe Mission, reports
indicated that the reeling
faction was locked in intense discussions over
their seemingly bleak
future.
There were also unconfirmed reports around Harare that some of
Kunonga’s
members were in the process of packing as time ticks toward the
expiry of a
five-day ultimatum given by the country’s highest
court.
“They are caucusing, in groups and seem not to know what to do,”
an insider
told the Daily News.
Freddie Saruchera, the Harare Diocese
education secretary told the Daily
News that the CPCA’s education board will
today meet to deliberate how to
manage the transition and take-over of all
the institutions that Kunonga and
his backers now stand accused of running
down.
“I cannot implement what I have in my mind. I am meeting the board
tomorrow
to get directions. I will have a position by tomorrow afternoon,”
said
Saruchera.
The Supreme Court on Monday ended a four-year
acrimonious battle for the
control of church properties between Kunonga and
his main rival Bishop
Gandiya, who is recognised by the international
Anglican Communion.
http://www.herald.co.zw/
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
07:51
Daniel Nemukuyu Senior Court Reporter
THE head of the
independent Anglican Church of the Province of Zimbabwe, Dr
Nolbert Kunonga,
who on Monday lost the legal battle to control the
properties of the
Anglican Church, yesterday said he was saddened by the
development and
spurned an invitation to join the Anglican Church diocese
led by Bishop Chad
Gandiya.
In an interview with ZBC last night, Dr Kunonga said he could not
associate
with proponents of homosexuality.
“We will continue as a
church. It does not matter whether we are in
buildings or not. We are a
church that is totally against homosexuality,” he
said.
“I am saddened by
these developments. In it we see that homosexuality has
prevailed,” Dr
Kunonga said.
He said he was not worried about who controls buildings but
insisted what
concerned him was the level of moral decadence affecting
Zimbabwe, which he
said church leaders were ironically supporting.
Dr
Kunonga is still at the Harare Anglican diocese office where he said he
is
plotting his next move. He refused to disclose where his followers would
congregate.
Bishop Gandiya had said the door was open for Dr Kunonga and
his camp to
join the church.
“The door is open for those who want to come
back to the church but
obviously we will follow church rules,” he
said.
On Monday, Dr Kunonga lost the legal battle to control Anglican Church
properties after the Supreme Court ruled that he and his followers were no
longer part of the Church of the Province of Central Africa.
The superior
court vested control of the church property to Bishop Gandiya.
It appears
most of the churches in the diocese had been rented out to
private colleges
and crèches whose operations have been thrown into
disarray following the
Supreme Court ruling.
Anglican priests and parishioners from most parishes in
Harare’s
high-density suburbs yesterday visited the churches and introduced
themselves to the tenants as the new owners.
Some of the tenants claimed
that they were threatened with eviction, a
development that resulted in
some quickly resolving to relocate to other
centres.
Most pupils were
busy writing end-of-year examinations when the college
authorities received
instructions from members of the Anglican Church of the
Province of Central
Africa.
The principal of Crystal College based at Anglican’s St Michael’s
parish in
Mbare, Mr Irvine Bhachisi, said the college’s future was uncertain
following
the Supreme Court ruling.
“The incoming Anglican authorities
were here and they introduced
themselves.
“We are not certain of our
stay here. It is really a transitional period and
it is sensitive. We are
going to sit down with the church authorities and
table our
proposals.
“But from my own assessment, the new owners are co-operating and
we may
survive,” he said.
Mr Bhachisi said Crystal College has an
enrolment of 150 pupils and it had
been offering high standards of
education.
A reverend from the Bishop Kunonga side was moving around the
church
premises inspecting the properties with the incoming authorities in
preparation for a hand-over take-over.
Bethel Academy that operates from
St Faith’s Anglican Church in Budiriro
said they would move out
today.
The principal, a Ms Muunganirwa, said she had been notified of the
eviction
plans and that she was now moving her pupils to one of Bethel
Academy’s
centres.
“The incoming authorities informed us that we should
move out although they
did not give us a date to do so. Considering that we
have other centres, we
have resolved to move our classes to those,” she
said.
Mr Kiven Dzikamai, who operates Shalom College at St Andrew’s Church in
Glen
View, said the new authorities had visited the church warning them of
some
intended changes.
“They have been here this morning introducing
themselves as the legitimate
owners of the properties. We talked and they
informed us that anytime they
may be changes to our operations.
“We do
not know what to do neither do we have anywhere to go. Our children
are
currently writing their end-of-term examinations and I hope there will
not
be any disturbances,” said Mr Dzikamai.
Mrs Mapuranga, who operates Little
Intellects Creche at the same premises,
said she hoped her children’s
graduation on December 4 would not be
disturbed.
“Children at my creche
are graduating on December 4 this year and I hope by
that day, we will be
still here. The new church authorities said they will
come back to us after
sitting down with others,” said Mrs Mapuranga.
The Kunonga priests could not
be found at the church houses.
Most of the houses were locked while children
and some elderly relatives
could be seen at some of the houses.
Jophie
College at St Joseph’s Church in Dzivaresekwa demanded to see a copy
of the
court order before any talks.
An administrator at Jophie College who refused
to be named said:
“They came here yesterday talking of the court order and
informing us of the
eviction intentions but we demanded to see a copy of the
order first before
we engage in any talks,” she said.
http://www.herald.co.zw
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 07:52
Daniel
Nemukuyu Senior Court Reporter
DEFENCE Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa has filed
a US$1 million lawsuit
against Alpha Media Holdings over claims that he was
leading a faction
fighting to succeed President Mugabe. Minister Mnangagwa
says in the court
papers that an article published in the Zimbabwe
Independent newspaper on
May
11 2012 was false and highly defamatory
of him.
The article entitled “Mnangagwa ready to rule” appeared on the
front page of
the newspaper edition.
Independent editor Dumisani Muleya
is cited second defendant in the lawsuit.
Part of the article read:
“Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa has for the
first time openly declared
his interest in taking over from Robert Mugabe
as the leader of Zanu-PF and
the country, in remarks showing the succession
battle in the party is
intensifying.
“Mnangagwa told the Zimbabwe Independent last Friday at
Heroes Acre during
the burial of Zanu-PF Politburo member Edison Ncube he
was ready to govern
if given an opportunity.
“This virtually confirmed
that he is positioning himself to succeed Mugabe,
remarks which could anger
senior Zanu-PF officials and fuel factionalism and
internal power struggles
ahead of the next elections. I am ready to rule if
selected to do so,
Mnangagwa said”.
Dube Manikai and Hwacha law firm are representing Minister
Mnangagwa.
The article, according to Minister Mnangagwa’s lawyers, alleges
that he was
leader of a faction fighting and involved in power struggles
with other
Government officials to succeed the President of
Zimbabwe.
“The article is false in that the plaintiff never made the
remarks
attributed to him in the article nor did he speak to the Zimbabwe
Independent or anybody else as alleged,” the plaintiff’s declaration
read.
As a result of the defamatory article, the minister argues, his
reputation
and good name was damaged.
He claims that he suffered
defamation damages to the tune of US$1 million
plus costs of the suit. The
summons was issued on July 20 this year.
Artherstone and Cook law firm
instructed Advocate Erik Morris to act for
Alpha Media and Muleya.
The
defendants’ lawyers filed a notice of exception to the declaration on
the
basis that it did not disclose any cause of action.
The words complained of,
according to the lawyers, were not defamatory per
se and that they were not
damaging to the minister’s name and reputation.
Adv Morris filed heads of
argument on September 17 2012 in which he stated
that the article did not
specifically allege that the minister was a leader
of a faction although
there was an implication.
“In most organisations, be they political,
sporting or cultural, there is a
vying for leadership. That is precisely why
elections are held. The mere
fact that an election is needed is an
indication that two or more persons
are seeking the vacant post and that
therefore there exists plurality of
factions.
“There is nothing to
suggest that plaintiff is fanning division or creating
dissent. (It is)
merely that he is one of a number of people, including Vice
President
(Joice) Mujuru, who are interested in standing for office once the
present
presidential incumbent steps down or otherwise vacates office,” read
part of
the heads of argument.
Adv Morris contends that the lawsuit was “an abuse of
process in that the
minister was seeking to enrich himself to an egregious
extent for something
that no reasonable person could possibly take
umbrage”.
The matter is yet to be set down for trial at the High Court.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
20/11/2012 00:00:00
by Staff
Reporter
THE University of Zimbabwe (UZ) scrambled to the Supreme
Court Tuesday to
block the auction of property worth more than a quarter of
a million dollars
which included a whole library and about one hundred
vehicles.
Former employees Kwanele Muriel Jirira and Loius Masuko had
moved to auction
the property, which also included Vice Chancellor Levi
Nyagura’s official
Mercedes Benz in order to satisfy a whopping US$300,000
award against the
institution for unfair dismissal.
But Justice
Vernanda Ziyambi granted a chamber application seeking to block
the move
which was sought by UZ lawyer, Advocate Thabani Mpofu.
“The university
has been granted an application for leave pending
determination of the
appeal,” he said.
The UZ account at CBZ bank had also been frozen as part of
the legal action
but Advocate Mpofu said the moves were illegal since the
institution had
appealed the compensation award at the Supreme
Court.
“The respondents have no right to execute at law by virtue of the
appeal
noted to this honourable court by applicant and almost by fact that
an
appeal against the award suspends the award appealed against,” he
said.
Previously employed by UZ as research fellows and based at the
Institute of
Development Studies, Jirira and Maseko were redeployed to from
the institute
to the university’s economics department as a part of a
restructuring
exercise.
The pair however, argued that the
redeployment was unlawful as it
contravened their contracts of employment
adding that they were not
qualified to teach in the economics department
although they fulfilled the
duties while refusing to take up offices at the
department.
A disciplinary hearing found them guilty leading to their
dismissal.
They however, approached the Labour Court where they won their
case and were
the UZ was ordered to pay Jirira US$156,852 and Masuko
US$134,362.
The award was upheld at the High Court resulting in the UZ
appealing at the
Supreme Court.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Alex
Bell
21 November 2012
The suspension of the Southern African region’s
human rights court is now
set to be tackled at one of the highest levels in
Africa, after the African
Commission on Human and People’s rights agreed to
hear a formal complaint
about the matter.
The African Commission
ruled on Tuesday that the complaint lodged with it on
behalf of Zimbabwean
farmers Luke Tembani and Ben Freeth, against SADC
leaders for suspending the
regional human rights Tribunal, was ‘admissible’.
The ruling was made at the
52nd Ordinary Session of the African Commission
on Human and People’s Rights
held in Cote d’Ivoire.
The complaint by Tembani and Freeth was filed as
part of the ongoing battle
for the future of the Tribunal, which was
suspended by SADC leaders over its
rulings against the Zimbabwe government.
The court had ruled that the land
grab was unlawful, and then held Zimbabwe
in contempt of court for refusing
to honour its original ruling.
The
court also held the Government of Zimbabwe in breach of the SADC Treaty
and
other international legal obligations. But instead of taking action
against
Zimbabwe, SADC leaders suspended the court in 2010 for a review of
its
mandate. Two years later the court remains inactive. Regional justice
ministers have proposed that the court only be reinstated with a very
limited human rights mandate, which blocks individual access to the
court.
All 15 SADC leaders have been cited as respondents in the landmark
case
launched by Tembani and Freeth, which was originally made to the SADC
Tribunal last year but will now be heard by the African Commission. It is
the first time in legal history that a group of heads of state is being
cited by an individual as the respondent in an application to an
international body.
Freeth told SW Radio Africa on Wednesday that the
Commission’s “courageous”
decision is a “breakthrough.”
“Never before
have 15 governments been brought before a Commission of this
nature and held
accountable. The Commission agreed to hear our case on the
basis that it
(the Tribunal suspension) goes against the African Charter and
against what
Africa believes in terms of the rule of law. So we are very
excited,” Freeth
said.
Freeth and Tembani’s legal team now have 60 days to compile their
arguments
and make further submissions to the Commission. SADC will also be
given a
chance to respond, before a hearing expected sometime next
year.
“The rule of law is so linked to development and the wellbeing of
people. So
what is happening in Southern Africa is severely retrogressive
for the rule
of law and human rights,” Freeth said.
He added: “They
(the Commission) have realised that what has happened is
very serious not
only for Southern Africa, but the whole of Africa. The
credibility of
African justice is in the reckoning.”
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
21 November 2012
Next month’s round of parliamentary primaries
for the MDC-T will likely
produce some interesting and shocking results,
according to party insiders.
Out of all its sitting parliamentarians and
senators who won in 2008, there
are predictions a good number will not make
it past the primaries, as they
have failed to deliver.
But a number
of party heavyweights like Secretary General Tendai Biti and
organising
secretary Nelson Chamisa are considered safe and are likely to
win the right
to stand again, uncontested in the primaries.
SW Radio Africa is reliably
informed that there is heightened tension in the
party as party activists
jostle for the right to represent the party in the
next
elections.
‘There is going to be some instability in the weeks preceding
the primary
elections. My good guess as has happened in 2005 and 2008, the
majority of
sitting MPs who will fall by the wayside are those in urban
rather than in
rural areas,
‘In urban areas you have constituents who
are more enlightened and demand
the very best from their MPs. A number of
them follow the progress of their
representatives in newspapers and from
radios and televisions and it will be
easy to see who has delivered or not,’
one party source said.
Political analyst Sanderson Makombe predicts MDC-T
supporters would rather
elect their parliamentary candidates on merit, and
not their standing in the
party.
‘There is this feeling that the
party elected the wrong people during the
last party primaries. They’re
allegations some of them paid their way
through to ensure their victories,
resulting in the defeat of true,
competent and legitimate candidates,’
Makombe said.
He continued: ‘Some of the current crop of councillors and
MP’s are
embroiled in corruption and loss of integrity, so much that they
face a huge
task to convince people to re-elect them. There will be shocks
certainly as
some senior MPs will definitely lose the right to represent the
MDC-T.’
http://www.radiovop.com
Bulawayo, November 21, 2012--Plumtree
Magistrate Stephen Mavuna has been
arrested and appeared in court on charges
of criminal abuse of office.
Mavuna who was arrested on Friday in Plumtree
appeared before Bulawayo
Magistrate Tawanda Muchemwa on Monday on charges of
contravening Section 174
of the Criminal Law that of Criminal Abuse of
office following disappearance
of court records at Plumtree Magistrate
Court.
Allegations against Mavuna who has been Plumtree Magistrate since 2009
are
that he presided over several criminal matters, and imposed sentences
that
required records of proceedings be sent to the Regional Court for
review and
appeal before a Judge of the High Court within seven days after
imposing
sentences.
But contrary to the provisions Mavuna failed to
submit records of
proceedings and kept the records in his office which led
to their
disappearance and have not been recovered up to date .
Mavuna is
also accused of having done disfavour to the appellants by denying
them
justice. This happened between period 2009 and 2012.
Magistrate Muchemwa
granted Mavuna free bail and postponed the case to 30
November.
There has
been an increase in the number of judicial and police officers
involved in
corruption cases in the recent years which analysts attributes
to poor
salaries. Most judicial officers are getting salaries below US$500
per
month.
Last year Zimbabwe magistrates went on nationwide strike that crippled
the
judiciary sector demanding better salaries and improved working
conditions.
The magistrates were joined by clerks of court and court
interpreters
effectively paralysing the judicial system.
The magistrates
were demanding payment of $600 for trainee magistrate, $1
000 for junior
magistrate, $1 500 for senior magistrate, $1 700 for
provincial magistrate,
$2 000 for senior provincial magistrate, $2 500 for
regional magistrate, $3
000 for senior regional and deputy chief magistrates
and $3 300 for a chief
magistrate.
The Zimbabwe magistrate said they earned far below their
counterparts in
South Africa and Namibia.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
By Jeffrey Muvundusi, Own
Correspondent
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 13:43
BULAWAYO - For the second
time in a row, a Daily News discussion forum in
Bulawayo on the legacy of
the late national hero, Joshua Nkomo, was banned
by police yesterday — on
the flimsy excuse that it was “political”.
The Officer Commanding
Bulawayo Province Chief Superintendent Rangwani
summoned the Daily News’s
Southern Region operations head, Ray Matikinye to
Bulawayo Central Police
Station early yesterday to deliver the news, almost
a month after the paper
notified them of the event as required under the
draconian and
anti-democracy Public Order and Security Act (Posa).
ANZ Group Editor
Stanley Gama said the inexplicable banning of any
gatherings to remember,
honour and discuss Nkomo’s contribution to Zimbabwe
did not engender
confidence about the government’s Police ban Joshua Nkomo
lecture commitment
to both media freedom and free polls next year.
“I think the media
community and Zimbabweans at large have a good reason to
be very afraid as
we approach national elections slated for next year. What
with Big Brother,
in the form of police and the intelligence service,
watching and meddling in
everything because they can?” he said.
The ban of the discussion forum,
which was to take place in the city on
Thursday, is the second one this year
after suspected CIO operatives ordered
the Daily News to cancel a Joshua
Nkomo memorial lecture in July that was
billed to take place at the National
University of Science and Technology
(Nust).
Reports then indicated
President Robert Mugabe wanted to be part of the
discussion.
In the
latest assault on the freedom of expression in the country, Rangwani
yesterday revoked the clearance that the Daily News had been granted as
required by Posa, citing the “political” nature of the discussion forum and
the “profile” of the headline discussants.
“We have decided not to
sanction such a meeting because of its political
nature. You are quite aware
of the provisions of Posa and by virtue of the
profile of the main speakers
and the emotive nature of the debate
surrounding Dr Joshua Nkomo, we cannot
allow you to go ahead with this
meeting,” Chief Superintendent Rangwani
said.
“You should be aware of the consequences if you dare go ahead with
the
event,” he warned ominously.
Zapu leader Dumiso Dabengwa,
historian and academic Phathisa Nyathi and
retired veteran journalist and
former PF Zapu cadre Saul Gwakuba Ndlovu,
were due to address the meeting
whose focus was on the legacy of the late
veteran nationalist Joshua Mqabuko
Nkomo.
The discussion was also expected to bring to the fore different
perspectives
key to solving the nation’s myriad socio-economic and political
challenges.
Civic society groups, students, academics and political party
representatives had been invited to grace the much anticipated
forum.
Top human rights lawyer Aleck Muchadehama said the gathering is
not of
apolitical nature and the discussions are organised for academic
discourse.
He said no notice is required to be given under Posa for such
gatherings.
Muchadehama added that such meetings are specifically exempt
from the
requirements of Posa.
Pedzisai Ruhanya, director of Zimbabwe
Democracy Institute said: “It is
clear that police are receiving
instructions from Zanu PF. It is a result of
the misguided views that the
party has that the celebration of national
heroes is a preserve for Zanu
PF.
“The two (Zanu PF and police) should be ashamed of the treacherous
behaviour
related to the legacy of Nkomo. Banning a newspaper lecture that
wants to
celebrate the liberation hero shows their insincerity.
“It
is clear that they did not like Nkomo given what they did to him after
1980.
But they must allow Zimbabweans who want to celebrate their
independence
through their national hero do that.”
Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo
declined to comment.
Spokesperson for Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s
MDC Douglas Mwonzora
said: “The ban is unreasonable and unjustified.
Zimbabweans should be
allowed to discuss issues that affect them. The ban is
high-handed and
designed to mask Zanu PF’ incompetence and intolerance.”
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 13:14
HARARE -
World lenders are close to a deal with Zimbabwe’s coalition
government for
$10 billion in debt relief, Finance minister Tendai Biti has
said, as
multilateral financial institutions seek to help Harare shore up
its ailing
economy.
International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and African
Development Bank
(AfDB) officials and negotiators for Zimbabwe’s fragile
coalition government
were working to finalise an agreement, Biti said in his
budget statement
presented last Thursday.
Progress on the aid
package, which had been caught up in controversy in the
coalition’s
political turmoil, appears to reflect a cautious easing of
Western sanctions
and a desire to show economic goodwill to help revive the
longstanding
Western-Zimbabwe partnership, strained by a decade of
socio-economic and
political turmoil.
Biti said a deal was being brokered under the Zimbabwe
Accelerated Arrears
Clearance Debt Development Strategy (Zaads) — mooted in
March 2012 — and
will include a waiver in unpaid debt.
Zimbabwe has
of late sent a clear signal to the multilateral financial
institutions of
its intention to comply with a tough economic structural
adjustment regime
if the world lenders write off the $10,7 billion debt.
The debt write-off
could help Zimbabwe gain access to fresh capital to shore
up its stuttering
economy and bankroll urgent infrastructure needs.
“Zimbabwe’s external
debt is now estimated at more than $10 billion and for
more than a decade,
the country has been in default, with arrears now
estimated at $6,1
billion,” Biti told Parliament.
“This has constrained development
cooperation with external partners,
particularly in the areas of long-term
infrastructure investment, official
development assistance and in some
selected instances, private investment.
“It is in this regard that
government has been engaging multilateral
financial institutions, the IMF,
World Bank and AfDB, for debt resolution,
including some debt relief under a
recovery programme that would support
sustainable stabilisation and boost
the credibility of the country’s
reforms, that way catalysing cooperating
partners’ and creditors’ support.”
The inclusive government, formed after
disputed 2008 elections, has helped
to transform the pariah image of
Zimbabwe and persuade the West to begin
rolling back sanctions after three
years of dramatic economic reforms.
The IMF, long wary of Harare’s
protracted arrears, shifted policy last month
to resume technical assistance
to support Zimbabwe’s implementation of a
comprehensive adjustment and
structural reform programme that can be
monitored by the Bretton Woods
institution’s staff.
Analysts say one way the multilateral financial
institutions could influence
the direction of policy in Zimbabwe, a nation
at the heart of the Bretton
Woods groups’ regional policy, would be through
economic support as Harare
tries to starve off a balance of payments and
budget crisis.
Obstacles remained to completing the debt relief deal —
which is reported to
involve a mix of debt payment waivers and complicated
economic structural
reforms, including retrenchments in the civil service —
and it was not
immediately clear when an agreement might be
announced.
But even as the negotiations proceeded with the world lenders,
Biti also
signalled he was pursuing lines of credit including a R575 million
facility
with South Africa; $50 million facility from Angola; 500 million
pula
facility with Botswana and $100 million line of credit from
India.
Zimbabwe was also seeking food relief from Brazil under the Food
for Africa
initiative. - Gift Phiri, Political Editor
http://www.defenceweb.co.za
Written by Tawanda
Karombo/defenceWeb
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 14:22
Zimbabwe has
increased its 2013 defence budget to US$356 million, up from
US$318 million
this year.
Last year Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister Tendai Biti set aside
US$194 million
for defence while this year alone, the government allocated
it US$318
million. Ministry of Defence officials have complained in the past
three
years that Biti has been Finance Minister that the budgetary support
for the
military was paltry. However, some officials and civic society
groups are
not happy with the increase in the defence budget to US$356
million.
Zimbabwe has an overall 2013 budget of US$3.8 billion, with
education taking
up US$1 billion. Between 1980 and 2009, the Ministry of
Defence came second
only to the Ministry of Education as it received more
than 20% of the budget
in most years. However, in recent years the defence
force has suffered from
decreased funding – around five years ago the
military only had money for
rations and salaries, reports the Jane’s
information group.
Informed sources say Zimbabwe’s military is in urgent
need of money to
effectively boost its recruitment and to buy new equipment,
most of which is
said to be out-dated and in urgent need of renewal and
replacement is some
cases.
“In order to gradually move towards the
international best practice
thresholds of 7% of GDP and about 30% of the
total budget on the wage bill,
government will continue to maintain the
freeze on recruitment (including
for the army and police), save for case by
case special dispensations on
critical areas,” Biti has previously told
Zimbabwe’s parliamentarians.
A recent parliamentary portfolio committee
on Defence and Home Affairs
lamented dwindling defence spending, which it
asserted “threatens Zimbabwe’s
territorial integrity and sovereignty over
land and air space.”
Zimbabwe’s economy is likely to remain subdued in
2013, a year that is
likely to see the country having elections to end the
current coalition
government bringing together Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s MDC and
President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF party as well as a
smaller MDC splinter
faction.
The elections will come against the
backdrop of concerns and allegations
that President Robert Mugabe is using
the military to roll out campaign
platforms for his re-election bid and that
of his Zanu PF party.
The Zimbabwe Independent earlier this month
reported that the Zimbabwe
Defence Forces (ZDF) has acquired approximately 1
000 vehicles, worth US$45
million, which may be used in support of Magube’s
election campaign.
Apparently the vehicles include Isuzu KB72 4X2 and Isuzu
KB72 4X4s as well
as other makes.
Around 40 vehicles have reportedly
already been delivered by dealerships.
“The purchase comes as Zanu PF is
stepping up its election campaigning by
acquiring 550 cars at a cost of
US$14 million to ensure its officials and
foot soldiers reach all corners of
the country to mobilise voters,” the
Independent said.
In November
last year the Southern Africa Report, which focuses on political
and
economic intelligence issues in Africa, said that the Zimbabwe Defence
Forces had taken delivery of “the first of several consignments of Chinese
small arms and equipment,” including 20 000 AK-47 assault rifles, uniforms,
a dozen trucks and 21 000 pairs of handcuffs.
Biti last week said
that Zimbabwe’s economy will grow by 5% next year but
emphasised that it
“has not entered into a sustainable growth” and recovery
mode and added that
“violent elections were the biggest risk” for Zimbabwe’s
economy in 2013.
“The biggest risk remains a violent and contested
election.”
http://www.voazimbabwe.com
Blessing
Zulu
20.11.2012
Hardliners in President Robert Mugabe's former ruling
Zanu PF party are
pushing him to approach his fellow Southern Africa
Development Community
(SADC) leaders to allow Harare to conduct next year’s
elections under the
amended Lancaster House constitution.
The irate
party hardliners are led by former Information Minister Jonathan
Moyo and
some senior military officers.
But both formations of the rival Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) have
shot down the proposal saying the election
roadmap, agreed on by the three
political parties in the unity government,
calls for a new constitution and
a raft of other reforms before the holding
of fresh elections.
The management committee, comprising representatives
of parties in the
inclusive government, is now in charge of the
constitution-making process
but there is a deadlock on the issue of
devolution and dual citizenship.
The two MDC formations want SADC to
intervene to break the impasse, but Zanu
PF says the constitution-making
process must be shelved until a new
government is elected which will draft
the country’s supreme law.
Zanu PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo told VOA Studio
7 that the MDC formations are
frustrating efforts to complete the writing of
a new constitution.
Human rights lawyer and political analyst Dewa
Mavhinga said Zanu PF’s
intransigence must not be tolerated by regional
leaders.
Mavhinga urged Zimbabweans to unite and confront Mr. Mugabe
should he insist
on elections without reforms.
http://www.thezimbabwemail.net
EVERSON MUSHAVA 8 hours 29 minutes
ago
FORMER United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has
rapped African
politics that nurture the “Big Man” system, which he says has
created
dictators in the mould of President Robert Mugabe.
Annan, a
respected diplomat from Ghana, told the latest edition of the New
African
magazine that many dictatorships in Africa were as a result of
politics that
encouraged the cult of personality. His comments will debunk
Zanu PF’s
theory that Mugabe is considered a hero in Africa.
The 88-year-old leader,
who has ruled Zimbabwe with an iron fist since
independence in 1980, also
claims Western governments, who were not happy
with his land reforms, gave
him the “dictator tag”.
Annan said Africa’s biggest undoing was the habit of
blaming the continent’s
colonial past for the problems many nations face
today. He said it was time
Africa looked beyond the continent’s colonial
past.
“The support for the Big Man system — Robert Mugabe an example —
created a
political culture that simply encourages autocrats and
dictatorships,” Annan
said.
“The struggle that led to the independence in
many African nations,
sometimes led to the creation of national movements,
and not necessarily
political parties.
“When independence was achieved in
these countries, they often found
themselves in one big group. This led to
the party-regime where the leaders
did not tolerate differences, and stay
on.”
He said liberation parties seldom made good political parties in
Africa’s
fast-changing political landscape.
“The sort of qualities that
make dynamic and revolutionary fighters, are not
necessarily the same
qualities you need to run a nation. This leads to
difficulties,” the veteran
diplomat added. “African governments are becoming
more sensitive to
democratic demands. “This is because civil society is
putting pressure on
the politicians to do the right thing.
“We are now at the stage where we are
seeing the generational change of
leaders, who are better educated and would
know what they want from
themselves, and their fellow citizens.”
Mugabe’s
previous administrations have used State security institutions to
crush
dissent.
Opposition and civil activists are still routinely harassed even
after the
formation of the inclusive government four years ago as Zanu PF
retained
control of security ministries. - NewsDay
http://www.thezimbabwemail.net
Exrtract...
Staff Reporter 21 hours 53 minutes
ago
HARARE - The National Sports Stadium which had been
provisionally selected
as the venue for the final of the country’s richest
and biggest knockout
tournament, the Mbada Diamonds Cup, is unavailable
until next year as it is
undergoing yet some more repairs two years after it
was handed over by the
Chinese, this time prompting reports of major
structural damage cover-up.
In 2010, the Chinese government handed over
the refurbished Zimbabwe
national sports stadium to the Zimbabwean
government on Saturday.
The stadium was built with the assistance of the
Chinese government in 1987,
but was closed for renovations for the three
years.
The 60 000 seater stadium is now closed again and is undergoing
extensive
repairs.
When reporters visited the stadium this Tuesday
afternoon, Chinese experts
and contract workers from the Ministry of Local
Government, Rural and Urban
Development were busy working.
The
workers were busy removing the grass turf and laying new drainage pipes
a
procedure which can take about two months.
On a highly publicised even in
2010, Chinese amabssador to Zimbabwe Xin
Shunkang handed over the "new-look"
60,000-seat stadium to the Zimbabwean
government at a colorful ceremony
where the government was represented by
Media, Information and Publicity
Minister Webster Shamu, Public Works
Minister Teresa Makone and several
senior government officials.
The Chinese ambassador revealed that the
refurbishment was done at a total
cost of 10 million US dollars.
He
hailed bilateral relations between Zimbabwe and China, saying these had
continued to expand over the years.
"The construction and
refurbishment of the stadium cement the traditional
friendship between our
two countries," he said.
Vice President Joice Mujuru thanked the Chinese
government for renovating
the stadium and for its assiatnce in other areas
of the economy.
She said the extensive work done by the Chinese contractors
had transformed
the stadium into a world class sports stadium.
"The
installation of new state of the art electronic and electrical
equipment as
well as the overhauling of civil works has enabled the stadium
to meet the
Confederation of African Football standards," she said in a
speech read on
her behalf.
The vice president hailed Zimbabwe's "Look East" policy
through which it has
sought to deepen cooperation with Asian countries
including China.
Minister Makone reassured that the Zimbabwean government
will strive to
maintain the stadium and keep in good condition.
"The
national sports stadium shall be in the hands of the Government of
Zimbabwe
and it will be run professionally," she said.
Among others, China Jiangsu,
the Chinese contractors, refurbished the VIP
lounge, upgraded two
substations, installed a new scoreboard complete with
control room and
replaced all ablution facilities.
Two football pitches were also
overhauled while part of the tarmac was
resurfaced.
Last night, a
government source said there are recurring major structural
damages to the
stadium without revealing details. He told our reporter that
the matter is a
highly sensitive issue invoving high level Zimbabwean and
Chinese government
officials.
Chinese are not well known for structural engineering and safety
is not a
priority.
In September this year in China, a lift at a
construction site killed 19
workers after it plummeted 30 floors in
freefall.
The accident reportedly occurred when a cable broke, causing the
metal
contraption to plunge 328 feet (100 metres) down the tower.
All
building work in Wuhan city, central China, has now been halted while
the
municipal government carries out security checks.
Work safety is a big
problem in China, where regulations are routinely
ignored.
Although the
government says it is taking measures to reduce fatalities,
more than 75,500
people died in work-related accidents last year, according
to the State
Administration of Work Safety.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
20/11/2012 00:00:00
by Moses
Chibaya
MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai may have helped President
Robert Mugabe stay
in power after ditching, at the eleventh hour, an
opposition deal to fight
the 2008 polls as a united front, MDC leader
Welshman Ncube has claimed.
Once beaten twice shy, Ncube ruled out the
prospect of another unity pact
with Tsvangirai ahead of next year’s general
elections, insisting the MDC-T
leader could not be trusted to keep his
word.
“In the run up to 2008 elections almost 18 months before the
elections we
deployed our best cadres meetings in South Africa, meetings in
Botswana
meetings everywhere with the MDC-T trying to build a coalition,”
Ncube told
NewZimbabwe.com at his party’s Bulawayo offices over
weekend.
“We even had the presidents of the two parties (in our case)
Arthur
Mutambara and Morgan Tsvangirai holding meetings culminating in our
signing
of an agreement at Pandhari Lodge (in Harare) that we were going to
fight
the election as one.
“(But) two to one week before the seating
of the nomination court, our
colleagues within the MDC-T rejected an
agreement which had been negotiated
by their president their secretary
general and others; they simply said No!”
Ncube’s claims were however,
dismissed as inaccurate by MDC-T spokesman,
Douglas Mwonzora, who insisted
that there was never a deal for the
opposition to contest the poll as a
united front.
Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980
received his
biggest scare in 2008 when he lost the first round of the
Presidential
ballot to Tsvangirai. The Zanu PF leader won 43.2% of the vote
against 47.9%
for Tsvangirai. Simba Makoni, who was backed by the Ncube’s
MDC formation,
secured 8.3% of the vote.
Tsvangirai later pulled out
of the run-off, accusing Mugabe of brutalising
his supporters leaving the
Zanu PF leader to claim a second round win with
85.5% of the
vote.
The regional SADC grouping then intervened to help facilitate a
unity
government after the hotly disputed poll, resulting in Mugabe
retaining the
Presidency while Tsvangirai became Prime
Minister.
Fresh polls to replace the coalition administration are now
scheduled for
March next year, but Ncube insisted that his party would go it
alone.
“Ideally no one can contest the need for those ‘democratic forces’
working
for the re-democratisation to come together and be able to work
together
against the institutionalisation of Zanu PF rule as we have known
it over
the last two years there is no contest on that,” he
said.
“(But) we were betrayed before. We are not going to set up
ourselves for
betrayal which is why we are not taking the initiative to
anyone. We have
had a very bad experience of being abandoned.
“This
time we are saying we are planning for one scenario and working for
one
scenario fighting an election on our own. We building our party to be as
strong as possible it is not our primary strategy (united
front).”
Mwonzora however, said they would not be going down on their
knees to beg
Ncube for an electoral alliance.
“If Welshman Ncube wants to
go it alone he can proceed. We are not begging
him to unite with us,” he
said.
“(Still) we welcome any unity of purpose to remove Mugabe and we
urge all
the opposition parties to put the interest of the people first
rather than
their narrow and parochial interest.”
Ncube and several
other senior figures left the MDC to form a separate part
in 2005 after a
bitter dispute with Tsvangirai over participation in the
Senate elections of
that year as well as differences over policy and the
general direction of
the party.
The acrimonious split has however, been credited with helping
divide the
opposition vote and handing Zanu PF an advantage in parts of the
country
where it does not have a strong following.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
Norwegian
students have petitioned their government to allow expelled
students from
Zimbabwe tertiary education institutions to resume or continue
with studies
in that country through scholarships. The recent plans trail
similar
initiatives that were put in place by the Netherlands government
between
2008 and 2009 which saw over 30 expelled and banned Zimbabwe
students
resuming studies in different Dutch institutions of higher
learning. Most of
the students have now completed their undergraduate
degrees and are now
studying towards their masters under the same facility.
The Student
Solidarity Trust (SST), a registered non-profit civil society
organization,
shall continue to lobby for such study facilities to
complement its
education programme that has seen tens of expelled students
graduate every
year and being honored at its annual “Against All Odds
Ceremony”. The
programme has always been overwhelmed by demand over the
years. The
programme has had a lasting impact with notable corporate and
civil society
leaders having been assisted through the programme and are now
leading
various organizations including Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, NANGO,
SAY
WHAT, Youth Forum, with some in political parties and the corporate
world.
The SST extends its appreciation to the Norwegian students and
student
organizations that are at the forefront of this initiative. The
organization
also acknowledges and celebrates the positive feedback from the
Norwegian
government officials, parliamentarians and other stakeholders in
that
country.
PROVIDING DEMAND DRIVEN SOLIDARITY TO THE STUDENTS COMMUNITY AND
BEYOND
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
Press Release
Issued : 21st
November 2012
The Centre for Community Development in Zimbabwe (CCDZ)
held a public
meeting on the Minimum Conditions for Free and Fair Elections
at Dombotombo
Hall in Marondera on the 15th of November 2012. The meeting
which attracted
more than three hundred (300) participants from various
sectors including
political parties, women, youth, trade unions and faith
based organisations
provided residents of Marondera with critical civic
education on the
conditions necessary for ensuring a ‘Peaceful, Free and
Fair Referendum &
Election.’
The panelists for the public meeting
were drawn from CCDZ, Zimbabwe
Democracy Institute (ZDI), a local think-tank
and research group , Heal
Zimbabwe Trust and the Media Centre. CCDZ
Director, Phillip Pasirayi urged
all stakeholders to a positive role in
ensuring that the forthcoming
Constitutional referendum and elections meet
the required standards for free
and fair elections.
“We have
pronounced ourselves as Civil Society on the kind of legal and
institutional
framework under which the next elections should be conducted”,
said
Pasirayi. “This framework must address the problems associated with
compilation of the voter’s register and clean up the register to get rid of
ghost voters; the independence of the electoral management body and issues
of political violence”, he added.
Pedzisayi Ruhanya from ZDI took
time to analyse the role of the media in
promoting free and fair elections.
He analysed it from an administrative and
environmental view. On
administration he emphasised that the candidates for
elections should have
equal media space in both state and independent media.
He lambasted the
current situation whereby only one political has airplay on
the national
broadcaster whilst other political parties are portrayed
negatively. He
stated that one main characteristic of an election is choice,
contrary to
the imposition of some candidates on people.
The Media Centre Director,
Earnest Mudzengi stated that soldiers should not
dabble in politics.He urged
the Marondera residents to resist being used as
cannon fodder in
perpetrating violence. He also said that the prime-minister
and president
drink tea together and asked why this cannot happen at
community level.He
urged people to unite and work together as they will be
together forever in
their communities,unlike politicians who come and go.He
urged the Marondera
residents to expose all forms of violence.In his
conclusion he buttressed
the fact that the electoral statutes which are now
in place and the
constitution are not enough to ensure there is democracy in
the country,’the
people have to fight for its implementation and against
selective
application of law’,he said.
CCDZ Senior Programs Officer, Tinashe
Chatira explained the important task
that women have in the upcoming
Referendum and Elections.
Chatira challenged women to not only register to
vote, but to vie for
political office. Chatira told the women to take
advantage of amendments
that have been made in the Electoral Act which
promote gender equality and
attempt to address factors which hinder women’s
political participation such
as violence. Women were also urged to be active
participants, not
spectators. They were told to take initiatives to create
community based
strategies to promote peace and to play their role in all
conflict
prevention and management initiatives.
Several critical
issues were raised by the participants at the public
meeting. One female
Councillor spoke against the barriers that women faced
during the 2008
harmonized elections. She challenged political parties, the
Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission and civil society to intensify their advocacy
for these
barriers to be removed in the upcoming elections. Other
participants sought
clarification over what measures will be put in place to
ensure that all
political parties are given fair opportunities to campaign
freely and
fairly. Concern was also raised over the media which was said to
be failing
to create a level playing field for all political parties ahead
of the
Referendum and Elections. Participants also suggested that CCDZ
should
engage top level political leadership and the police to ensure that
the law
is not applied selectively.
Issued by:
Centre for Community
Development In Zimbabwe
Contact Details:
George
Makoni
Information Officer
http://www.swradioafrica.com
Committee of the People’s Charter
21
November 2012
Open Letter to Zimbabwean Minister of Foreign Affairs
Mumbengengwi: Act
urgently on Eastern DRC Conflict, Call for Extraordinary
SADC and EAC
Summit.
The Committee of the People’s Charter (CPC)
notes with great trepidation and
misgiving the long standing conflict in the
Eastern parts of the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is
particularly so with the recent
escalation of the conflict and the
displacement of innocent and unarmed
civilians in the regional capital of
Goma.
While the CPC is aware of the ongoing efforts of the United Nations
Peacekeeping Force (MONUSC) as well as the initiative of the neighbouring
states through their 12 August 2012 Great Lakes Region International Summit,
we are of the firm view that the Zimbabwean government has an obligation to
call for greater urgency in seeking a ceasefire and an end to the internal
displacement of innocent civilians in this conflict.
This is not only
because the DRC is a member of the Southern African
Development Community
(SADC) but also because Zimbabwe has long standing
ties with the DRC that,
in the final analysis, make it obligatory for us to
support and seek
peaceful solutions to that conflict.
The CPC has also observed that it is
a general trend of the Zimbabwean
government and components of civil society
to seek regional and
international solidarity primarily on the basis of our
internal problems at
home and rarely do we seek or act in solidarity and
support for peoples of
Africa and elsewhere in the world that are in
conflict situations.
It is therefore of utmost importance that Zimbabwe,
through the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, formally requests SADC to act with
urgency on the matter.
This would include action that should lead to the
calling of a joint
Extraordinary Summit on the DRC conflict involving SADC
and the East African
Community (EAC) in order to resolve the conflict and
with African Union and
United Nations support.
Ends//
