The Zimbabwe Situation

http://www.zimonline.co.za/

by Sebastian Nyamhangambiri Wednesday 13 October 2010

HARARE -- Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has briefed South African
President Jacob Zuma on his dispute with President Robert Mugabe over
appointments of senior public officials, while yesterday he met foreign
diplomats to discuss the latest wrangle to hit Zimbabwe's troubled coalition
government.

The Premier also met civil society groups to brief them about the escalating
wrangle with Mugabe that is threatening to drive the unstable coalition
government into paralysis.

Tsvangirai's foreign policy advisor Eliphas Mukonoweshuro told journalists
moments after the Premiers' meeting with diplomats in Harare that it was now
up to Zuma, regional leaders and the wider international community to
pressure Mugabe to rescind the appointments.

"We are awaiting for a response from Mr Zuma," said Mukonoweshuro.

Zuma is the Southern African Development Community (SADC)'s official
mediator in the Zimbabwe inter-party dialogue. The SADC and the African
Union are the guarantors of the Harare power-sharing agreement known as the
global political agreement (GPA).

"It is now a matter of the region and international community knowing what
has been happening and perhaps that will create an environment in which a
process of re-engagement can take place with a view to finding a solution to
the crisis," Mukonoweshuro said.

The GPA and a constitutional amendment enacted to cement the political
agreement require the President to consult the Prime Minister before making
senior public appointments.

But Mugabe has flagrantly ignored the requirement to consult Tsvangirai,
unilaterally appointing his allies to key positions such as attorney
general, central bank governor, court judges, ambassadors and 10 provincial
governors, who were re-appointed last week among others.

Mugabe has cunningly exploited a legal grey area created by the fact that
while the drafters of the GPA and the subsequent constitutional amendment
made it clear that the President must consult Tsvangirai they did not
include a clause expressly banning his previous powers to unilaterally make
such appointments.

His ZANU PF party insists Mugabe still wields all his presidential powers
notwithstanding the GPA and the constitutional amendment.

Tsvangirai last Thursday said his MDC party would not recognise the
appointments as they were made unconstitutionally and called on countries
where Mugabe has posted ambassadors not to recognise the envoys.

There was no immediate reaction from Mugabe or ZANU PF. But the veteran
leader and his party have previously said they will not abide by all
requirements of the GPA until Western sanctions against them have been
lifted.

The European Union, United States, Australia, Switzerland and New Zealand,
have refused to lift visa and financial sanctions against Mugabe and his top
officials imposed eight years ago as punishment for allegedly stealing
elections, human rights violations and failure to uphold the rule of law.

Mugabe accuses Tsvangirai and the MDC of campaigning for sanctions during
their days as the opposition and says they must do more to call for their
removal, a position Tsvangirai last week dismissed as "rank madness and
utterly nonsensical".

Zimbabwe's unity government has done well to stabilise the economy and end
inflation that was estimated at more than a trillion percent at the height
of the country's economic meltdown in 2008.

But the unending squabbles between Mugabe and Tsvangirai over how to share
executive power and the administration's inability to secure direct
financial support from rich Western nations has hindered efforts to rebuild
the economy. - ZimOnline.

Zuma’s facilitation team jets into Harare

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Tichaona Sibanda
13 October 2010

The three member SADC facilitation team appointed by South Africa’s
President Jacob Zuma, jetted into Harare on Wednesday for a series of
meetings with the three principals to the GPA.

Charles Nqakula, who is being accompanied by Mac Maharaj and Lindiwe Zulu,
told us their trip to Harare was to review progress made so far in
implementation the remaining issues in the GPA, as directed by SADC at its
last summit in Namibia. This was despite reports that indicated this visit
had in fact been hurriedly organized in response to the latest crisis,
created by Mugabe’s unilateral appointment of govenors.
The SADC Troika on Defence, Security and Politics on 15th August resolved
that all outstanding issues in the GPA should be fully implemented within a
month.

That deadline expired in September with no movement whatsoever towards the
resolution of the sticking points - the rehiring of central bank governor
Gideon Gono, appointment of Attorney-General Johannes Tomana and the
swearing in of MDC-T treasurer Roy Bennett as Deputy Agriculture minister.

This is the second time such a deadline had been imposed on the principals
by SADC and not followed through. In October 2009, Tsvangirai’s MDC-T
‘disengaged’ from government, forcing SADC’s Organ on Politics, Defence and
Security to hurriedly convene a meeting in Maputo, where the political
protagonists were given 30 days to deal with a litany of outstanding issues.
The deadline came and went without any resolution.

‘We are here to follow up on events that have transpired since the SADC
summit in Windhoek. As you all know there are a number of issues that the
principals were asked to deal with and this is why we are here to check if
there has been any movement in that regard’ Nqakula said.

‘Obviously we will pick up on what has happened recently but our main
concern is to follow up on instructions given by SADC to the principals to
act on,’ Nqakula said, making a brief reference to the latest crisis to rock
the GNU.

Our Harare correspondent Simon Muchemwa said while Nqakula was desperate not
to link their visit to last week’s fallout between Robert Mugabe Mugabe and
Tsvangirai, it was clear they were jolted into action by what happened
recently.

‘There hasn’t been any contact between the two men (Mugabe and Tsvangirai)
since Tsvangirai’s outburst last week,’our correspondent said.

Apart from meeting with the principals, the facilitation team will also meet
with the negotiating teams from the three political parties. All three
principals are currently in Harare, though Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
missed Wednesday’s cabinet meeting, which a spokesman said was due to some
commitments in Manicaland. But our correspondent said it may well be that
Tsvangirai is ‘avoiding Mugabe’ until the constitutional crisis currently
prevailing in the country is sorted out.

Tsvangirai’s international relations advisor, Professor Elphas
Mukonoweshuro, confirmed that all other members of the cabinet from the
MDC-T were in attendance, except the Prime Minister.

EU says Zimbabwe ambassador row is 'serious matter'

http://news.yahoo.com/

AFP
- Wed Oct 13, 9:38 am ET

BRUSSELS (AFP) - The European Union on Wednesday expressed "great concern"
over President Robert Mugabe's unilateral appointment of new Zimbabwe
ambassadors to the bloc as well as to other institutions and capitals.

"It is important that the ambassadors be fully empowered to speak on behalf
of the whole government," said a spokeswoman for EU diplomacy chief
Catherine Ashton.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who is in a unity government with Mugabe,
this week asked the EU and the United Nations not to recognise new
ambassadors appointed solely by Mugabe.

Under the Global Political Agreement (GPA) that created the government
between the two political rivals, the prime minister argues he should be
consulted on all appointments.

Asked by AFP to comment on the issue, Ashton's spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic
said the EU had received the letters of appointment from Harare but that the
matter deserved further clarification.

"The EU supports the GPA," she said. "Non-respect is therefore a matter of
great concern". "This is a serious matter that demands clarification."

Letters were also sent by the prime minister to the leaders of Italy,
Sweden, Switzerland and South Africa, he said.

Friction over key appointments has strained the unity government since it
was formed last year and the political climate recently has deteriorated
with Tsvangirai last week accusing 86-year-old Mugabe of "betrayal" for
failing to honour the unity pact.

Over the past 20 months, Tsvangirai has feuded with Mugabe on naming
provincial governors, ambassadors, the central bank chief and attorney
general.

Mugabe has ruled out any concessions until Western sanctions imposed on
himself and about 200 close associates are removed.

Zanu PF leaders replacing Embassy staff with relatives

http://www.thezimbabwemail.com

13 October, 2010 08:00:00 Staff Reporter

HARARE - Top Zanu (PF) officials have secretly recalled Zimbabwean diplomats
in order to replace them with the relatives and friends of officials linked
to Zanu (PF) as a carefully designed plan to burst travel sanctions imposed
by some Western governments, a report has revealed.

The report also pointed out that in some Asian countries, the relatives are
playing a key role as agents for diamond smuggling and other business deals
including illegal arms trading and money laundering.

The newspaper report says sources in the ministry of foreign affairs have
revealed that several middle level career diplomats who were based in
Europe, China, South Africa, India, New Zealand and Australia were being
recalled under the pretext that the government was broke and could not
sustain them. They have, however, been replaced by children and relatives of
top Zanu (PF) and government officials.

The syndicate is run by the Foreign Affairs Permanent secretary Joey Bimha
who is a close relative of the First Lady Grace Mugabe.

Last year Bimha was denied a visa by the United States Embassy in Harare
when Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai travelled to Washington.

Mr Bima who doubles up as government official and family spokesman for Grace
Mugabe at First family funerals is a key figure in the syndicate running the
show of sanctions bursting.

His brother, the current Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce and former
Air Zimbabwe Board Chairman Mike Bimha is another key player in the dark
arts associated to the First Family.

His previous roles can be traced at Homelink, a Reserve Bank company that
swindled many Zimbabweans in the Diaspora of their hard earned money with
promises of "Borrowdale Brook" stands which turned out to be farms located
in Domboshava rural area.

Mike Bimha used to operate as an agent of Homelink from his base in
Manchester, in the United Kingdom before he was recalled for a roll as Air
Zimbabwe Chairman over seeing the smuggling of goods in and out of the
country.

He has also been involved at Mutumwa Mawere's SMM Holdings.

The recalled diplomats held positions ranging from counsellors to First
Secretaries. "Some of these people (the replacement 'diplomats') are not
even qualified and do not meet the minimum requirements of the Public
Service regulations, while others are too young. The others are prospective
students at Universities in countries where they will be posted. Zanu (PF)
loyalists are also being rewarded with diplomatic posts," said the source.

Nengomasha Mnangagwa, the daughter of the powerful defence minister and Zanu
(PF) secretary for Legal affairs, Emmerson Mnangagwa, is one of people set
to benefit from the scheme. "Nengomasha Mnangagwa and several other children
of top Zanu (PF) officials completed their diplomatic training last week and
very soon they will be deployed to various key embassies all over the world,
where they will take up different posts," said the Foreign Affairs official.

He said one of the well connected people who have been given a diplomatic
position was Pedro Del Campo, who is now called the Honorary Zimbabwe
Tourism Ambassador to Spain. The Spanish-based Del Campo is married to
Nyasha Mujuru, a daughter of Vice-president Joyce Mujuru.

"Zanu PF officials are actually boasting that they are busting these
sanctions, as their children and relatives are now studying and living
comfortably in Europe and USA under the guise of being Zimbabwean
diplomats," he said.

Joey Bimha, who was said to be in charge of the programme, was not available
for comment as he was with President Mugabe in Libya for the Arab-Africa
Summit. - Additional reporting by The Zimbabwean

Zimbabwe PM Tsvangirai Briefs Diplomatic Corps on Unity Government Standoff

http://www.voanews.com/

European Union Ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell'Ariccia said he has received
Tsvangirai's formal communication concerning Mr. Mugabe's diplomatic
appointment to Brussels and has forwarded it to EU headquarters

Studio 7 Reporters | Washington 12 October 2010

Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai briefed foreign diplomats in
Harare on Tuesday on his request that the United Nations, the European Union
and four countries reject the credentials of ambassadors he maintains were
appointed by President Robert Mugabe on a unilateral, thus illegal, basis.

Mr. Tsvangirai asked Italy, Sweden, Switzerland and South Africa as well as
the UN and Brussels to reject the credentials of incoming ambassadors
calling their postings "unconstitutional, null and void."

Mr. Tsvangirai said last week that his party will no longer recognize
appointments made by Mr. Mugabe without unity government consensus.
Challenged appointments include those of Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono,
Attorney General Johannes Tomana, provincial governors and judges as well as
Ambassador Phelekezela Mphoko, posted to Pretoria, South Africa, and United
Nations Ambassador Chitsaka Chipaziwa, among others.

The latest clash in the unity government has prompted South African
President Jacob Zuma to dispatch his mediation team to Harare. Diplomatic
sources in Pretoria said Mr. Zuma's team will arrive in Harare on Wednesday.

Minister of State Jameson Timba, attached to Mr. Tsvangirai's office, told
VOA Studio 7 reporter Ntungamili Nkomo that the prime minister reiterated
his position to envoys that Mr. Mugabe has violated the 2008 Global
Political Agreement for power sharing, and the Zimbabwean Constitution.

Responding, Rugare Gumbo, spokesman for Mr. Mugabe's ZANU-PF party, said Mr.
Tsvangirai has taken leave of his senses and that Mr. Mugabe has acted
within the constitutional scope of his office.

European Union Ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell'Ariccia told VOA Studio 7
reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that he has received Tsvangirai's formal
communication concerning Mr. Mugabe's diplomatic appointment to Brussels and
has forwarded it to EU headquarters there.

"We have received Tsvangirai's letter and we are now consulting South Africa
as well as SADC," said Riccia.

Political analyst Mqondobanzi Magonya said Tsvangirai's position on
appointments is a step in the right direction.

Beyond challenging the credentials of some of Zimbabwe's envoys to the West,
Mr. Tsvangirai will also boycott Wednesday's cabinet meeting in an
additional gesture of protest of what he calls unilateralism by Mr. Mugabe,
said sources in his formation of the Movement for Democratic Change. If
Tsvangirai follows through his threat, this will be the second time he has
snubbed the Cabinet - he similarly boycotted the Cabinet in October 2009.

Tsvangirai spokesman Luke Tamborinyoka said the prime minister will instead
meet with victims of alleged ZANU-PF intimidation and violence in
Manicaland, one of the country's more hotly contested provinces.

A related crisis was averted in the Zimbabwean Senate on Tuesday after
provincial governors failed to show up in the face of an MDC threat to
disrupt upper house proceedings if they took their ex officio seats.

The Senate was adjourned to November 9 after a brief session.

The Tsvangirai MDC is also toughening up its stance on the troubled
constitutional revision process, saying it will boycott public comment
meetings if the security of those participating is not guaranteed by
authorities.

MDC Deputy Organizing Secretary Morgan Komichi said the party will
discourage supporters from attending outreach meetings as its leadership
does not want to put their lives in danger. An MDC supporter died last month
of injuries sustained in a melee outside a constitutional outreach session
in Mbare, a populous Harare suburb.

Komichi, who has been monitoring the constitutional outreach process for the
party, said the party is tired of being abused and taken for granted by
ZANU-PF and want the national police to start doing their job.

Political commentator John Makumbe of the University of Zimbabwe told VOA
Studio 7 reporter Patience Rusere such developments reflect the extension of
government discord into the constitutional process.

NCA to begin mobilizing for NO VOTE campaign

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Lance Guma
13 October 2010

The chairman of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), Dr Lovemore
Madhuku, has said that from next week they will begin mobilizing people to
reject the constitutional draft that will be produced by the parliamentary
committee.

Madhuku was reluctant to say it marked the beginning of a NO VOTE campaign
telling SW Radio Africa; 'I think that's an overstatement. What the NCA is
doing from next week is to do a countrywide interaction with the communities
and people in the country, discussing the current state of affairs with the
constitution making process.'

The NCA leader said they will be focusing on the Constitutional
Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) and its failures and prepare members of the
public 'to reject what will be coming out of the COPAC process which we know
will be a bad constitution.'

'So yes in a way you can call it a NO VOTE campaign, but I think is a bit
misleading, because the idea is that we are not going to people to say 'vote
no'. We are going to the people to explain why it is necessary to have a
democratic constitution and why the current process will not lead to a
democratic constitution.'
Asked if it was not better to wait and evaluate the draft that will come out
from the COPAC process Madhuku said; 'We know that the draft that will come
out will be a defective constitution.' He also disputed arguments that
campaigning against the draft, as they did so successfully in 2000, will
lead to the current defective Lancaster House constitution remaining in
place.

'The constitution that we will be campaigning against will not be different
from Lancaster House. So it's not accurate or not correct to say if you
reject the constitution you are going back to Lancaster House. It won't make
a difference.' He said it was not the NCA's fault that government kept
coming up with defective constitutions and putting them before the people to
vote on.

Soldiers threaten MDC legislator

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

By Godfrey Mtimba
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 17:12

MASVINGO - Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Masvingo West legislator,
Tachiona Mharadza is living in fear of his life after he was threatened
with death by uniformed soldiers from the Zimbabwe National Army(ZNA).

The soldiers are accusing him of alerting the media that troops were
deployed in his constituency over the weekend.

Mharadza told the Daily News that soldiers clad in full military regalia
pounced on him while he was talking to a colleague on a street pavement and
interrogated him about why he had told journalists that soldiers were
terrorising villagers in his constituency.

The soldiers descended on Masvingo West at the weekend and started moving
around in groups threatening villagers with unspecified action for allegedly
defying Zanu PF orders in their contributions during the constitution making
programme.

The soldiers' presence in my constituency last weekend. They accused me of
attempting to tarnish the image of the military institution in the country,"
said Mharadza.

He said that he saw no reason why the soldiers would threaten him when he
was only trying to make sure that people in his constituency were free from
any form of harassment and intimidation.

"The soldiers came direct to me while I was talking to someone in the city
centre and made all sorts of threats. I failed to identify anyone from the
five. After theatening that they would kill me if I continued to interfere
in their operations, they went back to their vehicle and sped off," said a
visibly shaken Mharadza.

ZNA Masvingo provincial spokesperson, Kingston Chvave dismissed the
allegations.

"I don't think that is true; firstly I want to tell you that the army in
Masvingo never deployed soldiers in any part of the rural areas in the
province and as for the threats I have not heard anything like that," said
Chivave.

But MDC officials in Masvingo insist that their legislator was threatened
and said a report was made to the police.

Wilstaff Stemere, the MDC provincial chairman said: "I confirm that our
office received reports of death threats to one of our MPS and the culprits
are rogue soldiers who are moving around threatening villagers for
supporting a party of their choice."

He warned Zanu PF to desist from abusing the uniformed forces for political
gains.

Foreign, local poachers to appear in court

http://www.zimonline.co.za

Wednesday 13 October 2010

HARARE -- Six foreign and two Zimbabwean suspected poachers will appear in
court today on charges of hunting 'specially protected animals' and
possession of an unlicenced firearm.

The eight have been named as Democratic Republic of the Congo nationals,
Yemba Pauni Mulamba (56), Lomane Mulamba (24), Yemba Mulamba (26), Zambians,
Wiljoni Meki (46), Justin Tembo (46), Patrick Chiluba (54), and two
Zimbabweans Shapiro Shungu Michael Tagwirei (28) and Owen Godzi.

The suspects were brought to court yesterday but their trial could not
resume after the Congolese and Zambian suspects requested Tonga and Nyanja
translators.

The eight are accused of killing three rhinoceros, with two of the animals
killed and dehorned near Lake Mutirikwi in Masvingo province while the third
rhino was killed at Nyamacheni sanctuary in Guruve, Mashonaland West
province.

"It is alleged that on 12 June 2010, all the accused persons went to Lake
Kyle (Mutirikwi) in Masvingo and illegally hunted two rhinoceros, killed
them and dehorned them and left the scene," the charge sheet reads. "On 26
August 2010, the accused persons went to Nyamanechi sanctuary Guruve and
they killed one white rhinoceros and dehorned it."

Zimbabwe is among four African countries in the world that still have
significant populations of rhinos. The other three are Kenya, Namibia and
South Africa.

But poaching has been rife in Zimbabwe since landless black villagers began
invading - with tacit approval from the government - white-owned farms and
game conservancies over the past nine years.

The situation has not been helped by reports of illegal and uncontrolled
trophy hunting on former white-owned conservancies now controlled by
powerful government officials and members of President Robert Mugabe's ZANU
PF party although the government denies politicians are illegally hunting
game and insists it still has poaching under control. - ZimOnline

Police raid Gweru NGO

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

By Own Correspondent
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 16:54

GWERU - Police in Gweru on Tuesday raided offices of the Democratic Councils
Forum (Demcof), an association of councillors and confiscated 862 radio sets
that the organisation was supposed to distribute to rural areas in the
Midlands Province.

It has been established that when the police, led by one detective sergeant
Tshuma, raided the organisation, one of the workers, Cleopas Shiri, who is
the Demcof training co-ordinator was busy packing some of the boxes
containing the radio sets into a truck for distribution in Chirumanzu and
Mvuma districts.

Speaking to the Daily News from their offices that were still cordoned off
by police officers on Tuesday afternoon, one of the workers at the
organisation, Didymus Dehwa, said they were shocked by the police behaviour
which he said was an assault on the Global Political Agreement (GPA) and the
inclusive government.

"The police came in the morning already in a possession of a search warrant
and said they wanted to search our offices. Shiri was packing some of the
radios that we were supposed to go and give councilors in Mvuma and
Chirumanzu for redistribution to Zimbabweans who have no access to
information.

"They took him and the radios and they searched our offices and took all the
other radios that we had. We had 862 small radios and they were all taken.
We do not even know whether it is a crime to be in possession of those
radios and we are shocked by the action taken to confiscate these radios,"
Dehwa said.

By late Tuesday afternoon, Shiri was still detained at Gweru Central Police
and Demcof Lawyer Reginald Chidawanyika said they were indications that the
police wanted Shiri to remain detained.

"The police have said they want to investigate the source of the radios and
are demanding receipts to show where the radios were bought or ZIMRA papers
if the radios were imported.

"They have arrested my client because they are saying they found him just
about to transport the radios to another destination and they are also
saying due to the number of the radios they have found, they strongly
suspect they could have been smuggled into the country.

"Am still fighting to see that my client is not detained in the cells,"
Chidawanyika told the Daily News.

He explained that the radios were multipurpose and could also be used as
torches.

Human rights activists have condemned the police raid.

Sungano Zvarebwanashe, a human right activist demanded the return of the
radios. " As human rights activists we are worried by the raid of Demcof and
the confiscation of the radios. Why should the police, a government arm be
concerned about an organisation that is giving people a machine to hear
news?

"Everyone has a right to information but some of these rural people cannot
afford to buy radios or if they have, they cannot constantly afford to buy
the batteries considering there is no electricity. If an organisation then
decides to donate solar powered radios where is the problem?"

Other activists said the raid shows that the government still is not
committed to allowing free flow of information.

Junior officers threatened as election nears

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk

Written by Mxolisi Ncube
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 10:51

HARARE - Junior members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police say they are now
being terrorised almost as badly as in the run-up to the presidential
election re-run in June 2008.
After Morgan Tsvangirai and his mainstream MDC had defeated Robert Mugabe
and Zanu (PF) in the March 29 vote, junior officers were intimidated and
threatened by their superiors. Commissioner Augustine Chihuri, a war veteran
and self-proclaimed supporter of Mugabe's party, turned police camps into
Zanu (PF) campaign grounds, deploying his trusted lieutenants to campaign
for the ailing party and threaten perceived MDC supporters within police
ranks.
Junior officers described how they were closely watched and were not allowed
to move around freely. They were threatened with dismissal and even death by
firing squad if they refused to rig the elections. They said the strict
internal surveillance they were put under by the notorious Police Internal
Security Intelligence (PISI) was tantamount to imprisonment.
This week, some junior officers from across the country told The Zimbabwean
that an almost similar scenario has returned to most police camps,
especially in four of the country's cities - Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru and
Kwekwe. "Things are beginning to heat up, following reports that elections
will be held next year and our seniors have since turned station lectures
into campaign rallies for Zanu (PF), just as they did in 2008," said a
junior officer based in Harare.
The junior officers say that life for them, which had improved since the
formation of the national unity government in February last year, took a
turn for the worse last month, after an internal police communication. In
2008, the junior officers were forced to vote Zanu (PF) in the presence of
their superiors, who began each voting exercise by preaching the Zanu (PF)
gospel of anti-colonialism and hatred for the MDC.
Only one junior officer, Tafadzwa Gambiza, who was stationed in Kwekwe and
had always clashed with his superiors over the ZRP's partisanship, refused
to vote Zanu and was immediately dismissed. "The threats are growing by the
day. Even numbers of PISI members have been increased for maximum
surveillance on those perceived to be supporters of the MDC, who are mostly
junior officers," said a Bulawayo-based officer.
"Even our dependants who live inside camps are being screened for where they
work, where they spend most of their time and which parties they support.
Police officers whose support for Zanu (PF) is questionable are being
threatened with dismissal."
The internal communication, whose reference number is LDM02/2010, is dated
September 9 and is titled 'Voter registration'. It calls on commanders to
"educate" their juniors about elections. "During the last election, it was
noted that some members of the force who had applied for postal ballots were
not in the voters' roll," reads a part of the communication, written by
"Commander By-elections" and addressed to all stations in the country.
"Commanders should therefore encourage all members under their command to
register as voters. Voter registration and voter verification/inspection can
be done on any working day at the Registrar General's local offices. This
command will check on voter registration compliance in due course."
Junior officers say this flies in the face of the Police Act, which
prohibits active participation in politics by police officers.
"Paragraph 47 and 48 of the Act says that active participation in politics
and association with any political party is a chargeable offence, but the
senior officers seem to be using that only against those they believe to be
MDC officers," fumed another junior officer, who is based in Kwekwe.
"Section 16 of the police Standing Orders Volume 1 also states that no
political meetings shall be held in any police station, camp or quarters and
prohibits members from canvassing any support for a political party within
the force. I wonder if Co-Minister of Home Affairs Theresa Makone knows
about this."

Zimbabwe Immigrants Trying to Legalize Status in South Africa

http://www.voanews.com

Peta Thornycroft | Johannesburg 13 October 2010

Zimbabwean economic refugees are struggling to become legal in South Africa.
It is a long and arduous process for many Zimbabweans who fled from home
during the past 10 years.

Tens of thousands of Zimbabweans are attempting to legalize their status in
South Africa. They have been given a deadline by South Africa of December
31 to submit documentation seeking permission to work and live in South
Africa.

Most illegal Zimbabweans in South Africa say they fled to survive and earn
money for their families and some fled fearing political persecution from
President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF Party officials.

Many people in Zimbabwe only survive with money sent home by relatives
working in South Africa. A laborer, Peter, from Harare, says he does not
want to be illegal in South Africa.

"My family is starving, so no jobs in my country, so that is why I forced
myself to be here in South Africa. But my intention is not of being here
illegally, but because of the situation is the thing which forced me to be
here illegally," noted Peter.

Hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans have been deported from South Africa
during the past 10 years. Many of them return, despite harassment and fear
of xenophobia in South Africa.

But Home Affairs Deputy Minister Malusi Gigaba explains that South Africa is
trying to regularize their stay.

"Now what we are trying to do is to ensure that the Zimbabwe nationals who
are in the country are regularized," said Gigaba. "They are being given the
necessary permits, whether it is to study, work permits so they can stay
securely and properly and be able to work to live and to move without any
inhibition."

To stay, Zimbabweans illegally in South Africa, many of them destitute, have
to produce a passport, a letter from an employer or proof they are studying
in South Africa.

Peter, the laborer from Zimbabwe, says he has been four times to the
Department of Home Affairs in central Johannesburg. He says the South
African personnel there are kind, but are only managing to process about 200
Zimbabweans a day. He says he is lucky that he has a Zimbabwe passport, but
securing the other documentation took time and waiting in line two days.

"I am processing them, my passport and my documents are right, and I am
submitting them, but there is a big, big, big queue," added Peter.

Now he has to wait to hear if his application is successful. He said that
for some the wait will be a lot longer, because many Zimbabweans in South
Africa do not have passports. The Zimbabwean consulate in Johannesburg is
besieged with applications for passports.

Thousands of illegal and destitute Zimbabweans sleep at the Methodist Church
Hall in central Johannesburg. A spokesman for the church said Wednesday
many of those it shelters are trying to become legal, but are discouraged by
the long lines outside home affairs offices.

According to South Africa, the largest density of illegal Zimbabweans is in
Johannesburg. Many Zimbabweans in South Africa say December 31 is too soon
to process all those who want to become legal.

"There is a call for the extension of the deadline, [but] as far as we are
concerned there is enough capacity to meet the deadline of 31 December and
so we are not going to shift this deadline," added Deputy Minister Gigaba,
who says the deadline will remain.

South Africa has also offered amnesty to all Zimbabweans who have fraudulent
South African birth certificates or identity documents. But according to
Home Affairs officials in Johannesburg few have come forward seeking
amnesty.

China to invest US$I billion in Zimbabwe

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk

Written by Rufaro Dube
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 13:25

MUTARE - China will invest over US$1billion in industrial, education,
farming and health projects in Zimbabwe in the next three years, the Chinese
Ambassador to Zimbabwe has said.
Mr Xin Shunkang revealed these developmental projects at a public lecture
held at Africa University on Tuesday (October 12) this week. The lecture
focused on China-Zimbabwe relations, China's economic development, Overview
of China-Africa relations, FOCAC and China-Africa co-operation.
Ambassador Shunkang told the high profiled delegation, which attended the
lecture that China will soon implement a billion dollar project to
resuscitate the country's ailing sectors. "We are looking at about US$1
Billion budget at this multi-sectored
project, which will be implemented in the next three years.
"This will cater for several major projects, which include the construction
of schools, hospitals, mini hydro power stations, thermal solar power and
drilling of boreholes and provide 10 million RBM/ Yuan for purchase of
medical equipment of drugs.
He said for Zimbabwe to achieve a sustainable economic growth, it has to
maintain political stability, come up with a solid economic administration,
financial and investor friendly monetary legislations.
Ambassador Shunkang said Zimbabwe, just like China has to develop
economically in order to catch up with other developing nations. Zimbabwe
adopted a look east policy at the turn of the millennium after falling out
from several western states, which were reluctant to give aid to the former
government marred with corruption, mismanagement and lack of transparency.

Thousands Drop Out of School

http://www.herald.co.zw/

13 October 2010

Harare - Matabeleland South Province has in the past three years seen
thousands of children dropping out of school at both secondary and primary
level, a development that has been partly attributed to poverty.

The province has about 452 registered and 44 satellite primary schools.
There are 152 secondary schools, 120 of which are registered while 37 are
satellite.

In an interview last Friday, provincial education director Mrs Tumisang
Thabela said last year enrolment for primary schools dropped by more than 10
000 pupils from 180 332 in 2008 to 170 301. That year, more than 4 000
pupils dropped out of secondary school with enrolment figures falling from
48 062 to 44 008.

Mrs Thabela attributed this to economic instability and reduction of feeding
schemes at primary schools among other factors. Many could have found their
way illegally into Botswana and South Africa where they sought informal
work.

Mrs Thabela said there was a slight overall increase (2,5 percent) this year
but this was still lower than the 2008 figure. "What is puzzling us as the
ministry is where these pupils could have gone. We are in the process of
establishing whether they went to other provinces or countries, or they are
just sitting at home.

"Such school dropouts might be the same people who come back to the
communities and cause havoc as armed robbers," she said. Mrs Thabela said of
notable concern in the province was the shortage of science subjects at many
schools.

"The worrying aspect on our A level schools is that most of our high schools
offer partial curricula of humanities. "There are no sciences in the
province which means that we will always lag behind others in terms of
scientific development.

"Thus, as schools we should start building laboratories and other sciences
infrastructure so as to start offering science subjects," she said. Last
year the province had its best percentage pass rate in the past three years,
recording a 89,13 percent for Advanced Level candidates.

Zesa shuts Hwange

http://www1.herald.co.zw

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

By Tendai Mugabe

Zesa Holdings has indefinitely shut down Hwange Thermal Power Station owing
to technical problems, forcing the utility to increase load-shedding outside
normal schedules in most parts of the country.

Hwange has been producing 500 mega-watts and the shutdown has left the
country with the 802MW from Kariba and Munyati power stations and imports
from the region.

Zimbabwe needs at least 1 650MW, which rises to about 2 000MW in winter.

Zesa spokesperson Mr Fullard Gwasira on Monday confirmed that all five
electricity generating units at Hwange Ther-mal Power Station were down.

He would not give details of the technical faults and insisted they were
system disturbances common with power generation.

Mr Gwasira said refurbishment would be done in phases and no specific date
could be given for a return to normal service.

"Hwange is totally down at the moment due to disturbances within our
generating systems and we are making efforts to restore power to our valued
customers.

"We expect the first unit to be restored today (Monday) because the
refurbishment is in phases.

"At the moment we are banking on Kariba and Munyati, which are generating
625 and 30 megawatts respectively.

"We are also importing 147 megawatts from our regional suppliers. What this
means is that load-shedding will increase outside the announced schedules,"
he said.

By yesterday there were reports that Zesa had repaired two generators while
its engineers were making efforts to resu-scitate the other three units.

Mr Gwasira urged consumers to use power sparingly to alleviate the effects
of load-shedding.

Kariba is also operating below capacity due to scheduled annual maintenance
work.

At full capacity, Kariba generates 750MW.

Work at Kariba Hydropower Station started last month and has reduced
generating capacity at the station.

Due to limited resources, Zesa is only importing 147MW from regional
suppliers, which is not enough to cover the shortfall on the national grid.

Mr Gwasira said consumers owed Zesa over US$400 million.

He added that the power utility had no plans to avoid work stoppages in
industries due to the load-shedding.

Industry, through representative associations, has said it needs at least 18
hours of power supply daily to operate optimally.

Mr Gwasira said Zesa could not import as much electricity as they might
require because customers were defaulting in paying bills.

The US$400 million is believed to be enough to cover Zesa's external debt
obligations and import more power.

The power utility recently announced that load-shedding would continue until
year-end.

Farmer Ben Freeth presented with MBE

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Alex Bell
13 October 2010

Former Chegutu farmer Ben Freeth was presented with a prestigious royal
award in London on Wednesday, in recognition of his fight for justice and
peace in Zimbabwe.

Freeth was named as one of 44 recipients of a Member of the Order of the
British Empire (MBE) as part of the Queen's birthday celebrations in June.
An MBE is a prestigious international honour and is a tangible recognition
of Freeth's efforts to combat the injustices of Robert Mugabe's land-grab
campaign. On Wednesday, Freeth and other recipients were presented to the
Queen, who officially bestowed the honour on them.

Freeth told SW Radio Africa about the experience on Wednesday and agreed it
was "surreal." He said the MBE award is a "great credit to all the people
that have been fighting so hard for a better Zimbabwe." He called the award
an honour that gives encouragement to the ongoing fight against illegal land
seizures, a campaign that has left millions of people destitute. Over the
last decade of Mugabe's land grab campaign, an estimated two million farm
workers and their families have lost their jobs and homes, and the
destruction of the agricultural sector means the country is almost entirely
dependent on food aid.
"This is really encouraging for all of the farming community and their
efforts during this past turbulent and traumatic decade," Freeth said. "It
is also the start of more things to come in what we can do to serve
Zimbabwe."

Freeth added that he hopes the award will help the ongoing fight for change
in Zimbabwe: "We hope it will create a new, positive platform from which our
country can move forward. Hopefully we can get the people who have the power
to help."

Freeth and his father-in-law Mike Campbell, who co-own Mount Carmel farm in
Chegutu, made history in 2008 when they took Mugabe's government to court
over the land grab. The protracted legal battle within the human rights
Tribunal of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) led to the
pair and Campbell's wife Angela, being abducted, beaten and tortured. But
despite their serious injuries, they continued with their campaign to seek a
legal precedent to protect Zimbabwean commercial farmers from land invasion.

The SADC Tribunal eventually ruled in the farmers' favour in late 2008,
declaring the land grab unlawful. Mugabe's government was ordered to protect
the farmers and their right to farm peacefully on their properties, an order
that has been completely ignored. Freeth and Campbell have both been forced
off their property after their homes were burnt down last year by land
invaders. Land invasions and the persecution of farmers in the courts have
also continued to intensify across the country.

The blatant disregard of the SADC Tribunal meanwhile has not resulted in any
action from SADC, who instead decided earlier this year to 'review' the
legal body. SADC leaders resolved at their annual summit to 'review the
mandate of the Tribunal', which many critics have said demonstrates open
support for Mugabe. The decision means that no farm cases still pending in
the court, will be dealt with. This essentially leaves commercial farmers
with no legal protection against ongoing illegal land seizures.

Zuma pressured over report

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk

Written by Fungi Kwaramba
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 10:35

HARARE - Pressure is mounting on the South African President Jacob Zuma
(Pictured) to release the Report of the Army Generals who investigated state
sponsored violence in Zimbabwe in 2008.
South African Human rights organizations and the main opposition the
Democratic Alliance (DA), have in the past also called for the Jacob Zuma's
Government to release the report that names people who were at the forefront
of instigating violence and intimidation.
MDC-T President Morgan Tsvangirai said that it was time that South Africa, a
long time ally of Zimbabwe, releases the report.
Tsvangirai's calls were prompted by reports of renewed cases of violence and
intimidation by Zanu (PF), mostly in remote areas.
"Every act of intimidation or violence by state or Zanu (PF) actors is a
clear breach of the constitution. In this respect we urge South Africa to
release the Report of the Retired Army Generals who investigated state
sponsored violence and its implications on the electoral process and results
in 2008," said Tsvangirai. In 2008 former South African President Thabo
Mbeki commissioned a fact finding mission into state sponsored violence that
took place in the run up to Zimbabwe's one man presidential run-off.
Two years later, the report has still not been released. Mbeki's successor,
Zuma, who has become the facilitator of the fibrous GNU, seems reluctant to
release the document. South African NGOs such as South African History
Archive and the Africa Forum have tried to push Zuma to release the report
with no success. Zuma claims that the report does not exist in hard copy.

Zimbabwe Football Association Digs In Over Deported Coach As Captain Resigns

http://www.voanews.com/

Zimbabwe Warriors coach Tom Saintfiet was deported by immigration
authorities on October 5 just days before an Africa Cup Of Nations match
against Cape Verde

Marvellous Mhlanga-Nyahuye | Washington 12 October 2010

Despite mounting criticism over the appointment of Belgian Tom Saintfiet as
coach of Zimbabwe's Warriors national soccer team, deported last week by
authorities for lack of a work permit, the Zimbabwe Football Association
says it will stand by its decision to engage him over local candidates with
popular support.

Saintfiet was deported October 5 just days before an Africa Cup Of Nations
match against Cape Verde by the Zimbabwe Immigration Authority. ZIFA has
been trying to secure a work permit for him ever since.

But Zimbabwe Warriors fans are disillusioned and want ZIFA to put its house
in order instead of leaving management of the team to Saintfiet's assistants
Madida Ndlovu and Norman Mapeza as caretaker coaches.

The Warriors face Mali in their next Africa Cup Of Nations qualifier six
months from now.

ZIFA Director Benedict Moyo told VOA Studio 7 reporter Marvellous
Mhlanga-Nyahuye that he hopes Saintfiet's immigration status will have been
worked out by that time.

Meanwhile Warriors captain Benjamin Mwaruwari dropped a bombshell announcing
that he will no longer join the team for international matches but will
concentrate on his duties with Black Burn Rovers in the United Kingdom.

Fans are divided over Mwaruwari's decision to quit playing for Zimbabwe:
some say his departure robs the team of much-needed experience, while others
say he was ready to retire and has done so gracefully.

A new Zimbabwe crisis is threatening SA, like it or not

http://www.businessday.co.za/

ALLISTER SPARKS: At home and abroad

Published: 2010/10/13 06:52:18 AM

WHILE we have been preoccupied once again with our perennial game of
political pugilism ("Malema attacks Zuma"; "Zuma hits back at Malema"), few
seem to have noticed that our northern neighbour has run into yet another
crisis, which is likely to affect our worsening unemployment rate and our
urgent need for a higher growth rate.

The new crisis erupted 10 days ago, when Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and his deputy, Arthur Mutambara, met President Robert Mugabe, who told them
he had unilaterally reappointed all 10 of Zimbabwe's serving provincial
governors - who happen to represent his own Zanu (PF) party - the previous
day.

In terms of the national constitution and the global political agreement
(GPA), which sets out the conditions under which Zimbabwe's unity government
is supposed to operate, senior appointments can be made only after joint
agreement of the president and the prime minister.

Tsvangirai said this was the first he had heard of the appointment of the
governors. It was, he told a press conference last Thursday, "the last
straw" in a long series of Mugabe's violations of the GPA. He and his
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) had therefore decided to refuse to
recognise these governors, as well as a number of other senior officials
Mugabe has appointed unilaterally over the past 18 months.

Tsvangirai said he regarded these appointments as illegal and
unconstitutional.

It is unclear what exactly that will mean in practice. The officials
concerned have already been sworn in by the president and will presumably
report to him and continue functioning in their posts. However, the MDC
controls both the Treasury and the public service department, so it is
conceivable it could refuse to pay their salaries.

If so, a major crisis could arise, conceivably leading to a break-up of the
unity agreement. Or perhaps Zanu (PF) could pay the individuals itself: it
is suddenly flush with money thanks to the looting of a rich new alluvial
diamond field at Chiyadza, in the Marangi area on the Mozambique border.

The officials Tsvangirai lists as having been illegally appointed are: the
governor of the Reserve Bank, Gideon Gono, appointed unilaterally by Mugabe
on November 26 2008; the attorney-general, Johannes Tomana, appointed on
December 17 2008; a new police service commission appointed in March this
year; five judges appointed on May 20; six ambassadors appointed on July 24;
and now the 10 provincial governors.

Tsvangirai said that as executive prime minister of Zimbabwe, he would be
advising the countries to which the six ambassadors have been posted that
their appointments are illegal and therefore null and void.

This could result in those countries refusing to accept their credentials.

Tsvangirai also said Mugabe had told him at their meeting that he would
never swear in the MDC's Roy Bennett as deputy minister of agriculture, as
again required in terms of the GPA, which allocated cabinet posts to the
different parties in terms of the negotiated agreement. Mugabe has refused
for more than two years to swear in Bennett, who has faced a number of
trumped-up charges brought by the controversial Tomana only to have the
courts throw them out.

Only a few months ago, Mugabe said in an international television interview
that he would swear in Bennett if he was acquitted, but he has not done so.

He said the same to the 15-member Southern African Development Community
(Sadc), which is supposed to guarantee compliance with the GPA but has so
far appeared to be a toothless guardian.

"The matter of Roy Bennett has now become a personal vendetta and part of a
racist agenda," Tsvangirai said in a statement at the weekend.

On the unilateral appointments, he added: "These are simply the most obvious
and most high-profile breaches of the constitution and the laws of
Zimbabwe."

The MDC reckons only 10 of the 27 line items in the GPA have been
implemented in the two-and-a-half years since the agreement was signed. Of
the 27 outstanding items, 24 have been the subject of special agreements
between the heads of the signatory parties - but they remain unfulfilled.

At its last summit in Windhoek two months ago, the Sadc countries insisted
that the 24 items be implemented within 30 days. But the deadline has passed
and nothing has been done.

Now we have Mugabe's latest and most blatant defiance of the regional
alliance.

What will Sadc do about it? The organisation's international credibility is
so diminished that expectations must be regarded as minimal. It is really up
to S A , as the regional superpower and the country most closely affected by
conditions in Zimbabwe, to give the organisation some spine.

Everyone realised when president Thabo Mbeki was in power that he was so in
awe of Mugabe's iconic status in Africa that there was no prospect of his
getting tough with the arrogant old bully.

But there were hopes that when President Jacob Zuma took over, S A 's stance
would stiffen, particularly in light of Zanu (PF)'s humiliating treatment of
his alliance partner, the Congress of South African Trade Unions, when that
organisation was unceremoniously thrown out of Zimbabwe when it tried to
visit its fellow unionists in October 2004 and again in February 2005.

But no. Zuma's congenital indecision on every critical issue confronting S A
appears to extend to Zimbabwe as well. And the Zimbabwe issue is indeed
critical to us. Although economic conditions have improved for a few in the
upper echelons of Zimbabwean society, two-thirds of its population are still
living on less than 1 a day. At least 2-million of its people are on the
edge of starvation.

Given our own unacceptable unemployment figures, that presents a continuing
threat to our social security.

Reports from Zimbabwe indicate it is facing the worst crop failure in its
history, not because of drought, as Mugabe claims, but because of
unproductive farming resulting from his reckless land-distribution policies.

We already have more than 3-million Zimbabwe refugees here. More, many more,
are going to come - and no amount of regulation or certification is going to
stop them. That points to the danger of more xenophobic and other social
unrest.

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan says we need a sustained 7% growth rate to
reduce our unemployment numbers - indeed to prevent them from getting worse
exponentially. A real economic recovery in Zimbabwe, a proven mining and
agricultural jewel of a country, could revive the whole subcontinent, make
Sadc a boom region as Latin America is becoming. S A , as the engine of the
region, could prosper as Brazil is.

But not as long as Zimbabwe continues to be a suppurating sore in our midst.

It doesn't require much to sort out the problem. All Zuma needs to do is to
tell Mugabe firmly that if he doesn't implement all those outstanding GPA
issues right now, and ensure that Zimbabwe holds genuinely free and fair
elections before the end of next year - which Sadc is going to monitor
closely from six months in advance - SA and all other Sadc members won't
recognise an election that doesn't pass its scrutiny or any government that
emerges from it.

That would stop Mugabe in his tracks.

- Sparks is a veteran journalist and political analyst.

Zimbabwe Review

The Solidarity Peace Trust today launched a new initiative - the Zimbabwe Review. A series of essays posted in this new section on their website are designed to stimulate debate and discussion around key Zimbabwean themes. The Trust circulated one of these essays today: The Elephant in the Room: A Critical Reflection on Race in Zimbabwe's Protracted Crisis by Dr James Muzondidya is available on the SPT website. Please visit the link to read the article and join the discussion by sharing your thoughts on the issues raised in the essay. More from SPT:

Over the past month the Trust has placed a series of essays on various aspects of Zimbabwean politics on its website. The aim of this initiative is to open up the intellectual debates on current politics in the country, and to provide more extended discussions around key issues of central concern to the Trust, such as the Constitutional Debate, Transitional Justice, Human Rights issues, National Healing, Security Sector Reform and broader debates on development questions. Thus far we have featured a numbers of articles in these areas by Zimbabwean intellectuals, who have agreed to provide short versions of their more extended research as a way of both contributing to the debates and signaling ongoing work in various areas and covering different disciplines.

SPT has decided to include such interventions under a new section of the website known as the Zimbabwe Review. Essays available include:

The Elephant in the Room: A Critical Reflection on Race in Zimbabwe's Protracted Crisis (Dr James Muzondidya)
Media reform under the unity government. A critical assessment June 2010 (Dr Wallace Chuma )
Zimbabwe's multi-layered crisis - CMI Brief; June 2010 Vol 9 No 3 (Professor Alois Mlambo and Professor Brian Raftopoulos)
The South African led Mediation on Zimbabwe: Can it help break the deadlock? (Professor Brian Raftopoulos)
Security Sector Reform in Zimbabwe: Prospects and Challenges (Munyaradzi Nyakudya)
The Constitution and the Constitutional Process in Zimbabwe (Dr Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni)

We will continue to solicit selected pieces on a range of subjects from individuals working in various fields, in the hope of providing informed opinions on key issues confronting contemporary Zimbabwean politics, and in the hope of eliciting responses from readers plugged in to such debates. It is our intention that the content and tone of such inputs will contribute to a national debate and avoid narrowly party political positions, without conceding a commitment to the broader principles of democratization.

The contents of the Review will be in addition to the already widely read, detailed reports that SPT continues to release in the course of the year. It is our hope that the Review will provide a forum for a discerning readership in search of summary positions based on existing or ongoing research in different spheres. We look forward to such contributions and the responses to them.

This entry was posted by Sokwanele on Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

The Elephant in the Room: A Critical Reflection on Race in Zimbabwe’s Protracted Crisis

Peace Watch 11/2010 of 12th October [Make Women Count for Peace]

PEACE WATCH 11/2010

[12th October 2010]

STOP PRESS

Please sign the petition to stop sexual violence in conflict and ensure that women are part of peace talks that affect their lives

Women and girls hardly ever fight the world's wars, but they often suffer the most. Increasingly, they are the direct targets of fighting, when sexual violence is deliberately used as a tactic of warfare. And yet fewer than 8 percent of the people who negotiate peace deals are women, and only about three dozen individuals have been convicted and jailed by international war crimes tribunals for committing or commanding widespread sexual violence. Sexual violence in conflict is NOT inevitable. It can be stopped. Ten years ago, in its landmark resolution 1325, the United Nations Security Council called for women's full and equal participation in all elements of peacemaking, and for prevention of this kind of violence. But implementation of this historic resolution has been too slow.

The Petition

[This petition is sent out by the UNIFEM Say NO – UNiTE to End Violence against Women Campaign]

Make Women Count for Peace

Add your name to this petition and ask your government to support three steps to implement Security Council resolution 1325:

· Prosecute those who command and/or commit sexual violence and exclude them from armies and police forces after conflict.

· Ensure that women participate in peace negotiations and all post-conflict decision-making institutions.

· Increase the number of women in troops, police forces and civilians within international peacekeeping efforts.

Appeal from the Say No Team

Dear Friends,

We have 2 weeks left to impress the UN Security Council with a strong call to end sexual violence in conflict and ensure that women are part of peace talks that affect their lives.

Take a stand today: sign the petition before October 21, urging governments to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1325 that ensures women’s participation in peace-building.

In today’s wars, ninety percent of casualties are civilians, and women and children suffer the most. Increasingly, they are direct targets of sexual violence. Yet among peace negotiators, women average at less than 8 percent. As a result, their needs and priorities are sidelined.

You can make a difference!

• Sign the petition [Ctrl plus click to follow link]

• Have your say on Facebook, Twitter and blogs

• Post the 1325 banner or web button on your websites, social networking sites and blogs to spread the word

There’s no peace without women’s peace. We are counting on you!

For those without Internet access who would like to sign the petition, send Veritas the following details: Name, Email, Country:

Again for those without Internet access, below is the full text of Resolution 1325 (2000)

Resolution 1325 (2000) Adopted by the Security Council at its 4213th meeting, on 31 October 2000

The Security Council,

Recalling its resolutions 1261 (1999) of 25 August 1999, 1265 (1999) of 17 September 1999, 1296 (2000) of 19 April 2000 and 1314 (2000) of 11 August 2000, as well as relevant statements of its President, and recalling also the statement of its President to the press on the occasion of the United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace (International Women’s Day) of 8 March 2000 (SC/6816),

Recalling also the commitments of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (A/52/231) as well as those contained in the outcome document of the twenty-third Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly entitled “Women 2000: Gender Equality, Development and Peace for the Twenty-First Century” (A/S-23/10/Rev.1), in particular those concerning women and armed conflict,

Bearing in mind the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the primary responsibility of the Security Council under the Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security,

Expressing concern that civilians, particularly women and children, account for the vast majority of those adversely affected by armed conflict, including as refugees and internally displaced persons, and increasingly are targeted by combatants and armed elements, and recognizing the consequent impact this has on durable peace and reconciliation,

Reaffirming the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts and in peace-building, and stressing the importance of their equal participation and full involvement in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security, and the need to increase their role in decision-making with regard to conflict prevention and resolution,

Reaffirming also the need to implement fully international humanitarian and human rights law that protects the rights of women and girls during and after conflicts,

Emphasizing the need for all parties to ensure that mine clearance and mine awareness programmes take into account the special needs of women and girls,

Recognizing the urgent need to mainstream a gender perspective into peacekeeping operations, and in this regard noting the Windhoek Declaration and the Namibia Plan of Action on Mainstreaming a Gender Perspective in Multidimensional Peace Support Operations (S/2000/693),

Recognizing also the importance of the recommendation contained in the statement of its President to the press of 8 March 2000 for specialized training for all peacekeeping personnel on the protection, special needs and human rights of women and children in conflict situations,

Recognizing that an understanding of the impact of armed conflict on women and girls, effective institutional arrangements to guarantee their protection and full participation in the peace process can significantly contribute to the maintenance and promotion of international peace and security,

Noting the need to consolidate data on the impact of armed conflict on women and girls,

1. Urges Member States to ensure increased representation of women at all decision-making levels in national, regional and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflict;

2. Encourages the Secretary-General to implement his strategic plan of action (A/49/587) calling for an increase in the participation of women at decision making levels in conflict resolution and peace processes;

3. Urges the Secretary-General to appoint more women as special representatives and envoys to pursue good offices on his behalf, and in this regard calls on Member States to provide candidates to the Secretary-General, for inclusion in a regularly updated centralized roster;

4. Further urges the Secretary-General to seek to expand the role and contribution of women in United Nations field-based operations, and especially among military observers, civilian police, human rights and humanitarian personnel;

5. Expresses its willingness to incorporate a gender perspective into peacekeeping operations, and urges the Secretary-General to ensure that, where appropriate, field operations include a gender component;

6. Requests the Secretary-General to provide to Member States training guidelines and materials on the protection, rights and the particular needs of women, as well as on the importance of involving women in all peacekeeping and peacebuilding measures, invites Member States to incorporate these elements as well as HIV/AIDS awareness training into their national training programmes for military and civilian police personnel in preparation for deployment, and further requests the Secretary-General to ensure that civilian personnel of peacekeeping operations receive similar training;

7. Urges Member States to increase their voluntary financial, technical and logistical support for gender-sensitive training efforts, including those undertaken by relevant funds and programmes, inter alia, the United Nations Fund for Women and United Nations Children’s Fund, and by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other relevant bodies;

8. Calls on all actors involved, when negotiating and implementing peace agreements, to adopt a gender perspective, including, inter alia:

(a) The special needs of women and girls during repatriation and resettlement and for rehabilitation, reintegration and post-conflict reconstruction; (b) Measures that support local women’s peace initiatives and indigenous processes for conflict resolution, and that involve women in all of the implementation mechanisms of the peace agreements;

(c) Measures that ensure the protection of and respect for human rights of women and girls, particularly as they relate to the constitution, the electoral system, the police and the judiciary;

9. Calls upon all parties to armed conflict to respect fully international law applicable to the rights and protection of women and girls, especially as civilians, in particular the obligations applicable to them under the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the Additional Protocols thereto of 1977, the Refugee Convention of 1951 and the Protocol thereto of 1967, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women of 1979 and the Optional Protocol thereto of 1999 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1989 and the two Optional Protocols thereto of 25 May 2000, and to bear in mind the relevant provisions of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court;

10. Calls on all parties to armed conflict to take special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence, particularly rape and other forms of sexual abuse, and all other forms of violence in situations of armed conflict;

11. Emphasizes the responsibility of all States to put an end to impunity and to prosecute those responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes including those relating to sexual and other violence against women and girls, and in this regard stresses the need to exclude these crimes, where feasible from amnesty provisions;

12. Calls upon all parties to armed conflict to respect the civilian and humanitarian character of refugee camps and settlements, and to take into account the particular needs of women and girls, including in their design, and recalls its resolutions 1208 (1998) of 19 November 1998 and 1296 (2000) of 19 April 2000;

13. Encourages all those involved in the planning for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration to consider the different needs of female and male ex-combatants and to take into account the needs of their dependants;

14. Reaffirms its readiness, whenever measures are adopted under Article 41 of the Charter of the United Nations, to give consideration to their potential impact on the civilian population, bearing in mind the special needs of women and girls, in order to consider appropriate humanitarian exemptions;

15. Expresses its willingness to ensure that Security Council missions take into account gender considerations and the rights of women, including through consultation with local and international women’s groups;

16. Invites the Secretary-General to carry out a study on the impact of armed conflict on women and girls, the role of women in peace-building and the gender dimensions of peace processes and conflict resolution, and further invites him to submit a report to the Security Council on the results of this study and to make this available to all Member States of the United Nations;

17. Requests the Secretary-General, where appropriate, to include in his reporting to the Security Council progress on gender mainstreaming throughout peacekeeping missions and all other aspects relating to women and girls;

18. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

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